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THB 


APPROBATION 


OF THB 

ARCHBISHOPS OF IRELAND. 

Sir: 

We highly approve of the publication of Baker’s 
Works, and recommend them to the perusal 
of the Faithful, as eminently calculated to convey 
to persons of every station, solid and practical in¬ 
formation, and to awaken in every breast senti¬ 
ments of pure devotion. The simplicity, perspi¬ 
cuity, and purity of the style in which the divine 
truths are unfolded, admirably adapt these refec¬ 
tions to all capacities. The Pastor will find them 
^useful in his chamber, and at the altar; and the 
Laity will learn from them to meditate with fruit, 
on the life and passipn of the Redeemer, and dis¬ 
pose themselves ^^to rise with Christ, and seek the 
things that are above.^^ 

P. CURTIS, D. D. Archbishop of Armagh, 

>J4 D MURRAY, D. D. Archbishop of Dublin. 

^4 R. LAFFAN, D.D. Archbishop of Cashel. 

O. KELLY, D. D. Archbishop of Tuam 

To Mr* Blenkinsop. 



THE 


LENTEN MONITOR, 


OR 

MORAL REFLECTIONS AND DEVOUT ASPIRATIONS 

ON 

THE GOSPELS, 

FOR EACH DAT 


FROM ASH-WEDNESDAY TO EASTER SUNDAY. 





4: 




BY THE REV. P.'^AKER. 

il 



Behold notv i s the acceptable time:—n(nv is the day of salvation. 2 Cor.vi. 8 

* 


BY PEBMISSTON OF HIS GBACE, THE ABCHBISHOP OF BALT1H0B£> 
AND THE HIGH APPBOBATION OF THE VENERABLE^ 

THE ARCHBISHOPS OF IBEEAND* 


> 

> 


iJalttmore: 

PUBLISHED BY P. BLENKINSOP, 

AT THE CATHOLIC BOOK WAREHOUSE, NO. 67 S. H16H*5T« 
Within one door of Pratt-street. 


1827 














DISTRICT OFMARYL^iJ\^D, TO WIT^ 

[L S.] BE IT REMEMBERED* that on this sixteenth day of No¬ 
vember in the fifty first year of the inde|;endeiice of the United Slates of 
Anieiica* PETER BLENKINSOP of the said District, hath deposited in 
this office, the title of a Book, the ri^rht whereof he claims as Proprietor, in 
the words f*)Ilowin^, to wit— 

“THE LEV TEN MONITOR, or moral reflections onthe Gospels for 
'^each daij^from Ash Wednesday to Easter Su7iday. By the Bev- I\ Baker 
Behold 7107V is the acceptable time;^no7v is the day of Salvatiosu 2 Cor. 
vi. 8. 

Ill conformity with the act*of Cong:i*ess. of the United States, entitled 
“All Act for the encouragement ol learning, by securing the copies of Maps, 
Charts, and Books, to the authors and proprietors of such copies during the 
limes therein mentioned;” and also to the Act, entitled “An Act supple¬ 
mentary to the Act. entitled An Act, for the encouragement of learning, 
by securing the copies of Maps, Charts, and Books, to the authors and pro¬ 
prietors of such copies, during the time* therein mentioned, and extending 
the benefits thereof, to the aits of designing, engraving, and etching liiston- 
cal and other prints. PHILIP MOORE, 

Clerk of tlie District of Maryland. 




‘) 

i •/ 

> ^ 

’Jy'i O 
> 


Maiehett, print. 8, Mercer-st. 




ASH WEDNESDAY. 

O^r THE SLESSED ^SHES. 


Memento homo, quia pulvis es, 

Et in pulverem reverteris. 

Remember man, that dust thou art, 
And into dust thou shalt return. 


REFLECTIONS. 

The ceremony of sprinkling ashes on the heads 
of the faithful this day, is instructive and signifi¬ 
cant. We are now entering upon Lent, a time 
particularly dedicated to fasting, prayer, mortifi¬ 
cation and self-denial. By these penitential ex¬ 
ercises, we must endeavour to make our peace 
with God, whom we have offended hy sin; and 
seek a reconciliation with him, by those means 
which are most likely to obtain his mercy. By 
receiving ashes upon our heads, we appear be¬ 
fore him in the posture of penitents, and, provided 
we accompany this outward ceremony with an in¬ 
ternal sorrow and contrition for our sins, a true 
repentance, and firm purpose of amendment, we 
then comply with the vieW'S of the church, and 
shall reap the advantages of mercy and pardon; 
but without such interior dispositions, we shall 
find little benefit; for however we may exteriorly 
join with others in the ceremony of the day, we 
only deserve the same reproach God made to 
the Jews by his prophet, Isaias xxix. This peo¬ 
ple honour me with their lipsy but their hearts are 
jar from me. Therefore, without these interior 
sentiments of sorrow for past sins, and resolutions 
2 




14 


of amendment, which God and his church re¬ 
quire, the holiest and best institutions can be of 
little advantage to those who thus refuse or ne¬ 
glect to observe them as they ought. 

The words pronounced by the priest when he 
puts the ashes on our heads, Remember man^ 
is a seasonable memento of our mortality, an ex¬ 
cellent and useful admonition, designed to put us 
in mind that we drew our origin from dust, and 
that, however, we may here indulge a haughty 
pride and love of ourselves, or admire our own 
beauty, strength and talents, still, alas! we are no 
more than dust, and into dust we must return. 

The haughty monarch at whose despotic frown 
thousands tremble, on whose will the lives and 
fortunes of so many depend, and whose very name 
spreads terror into distant realms, what is he but 
dust: from dust be came, and like the meanest of 
his slaves, to dust he shall return, and bury all 
his glory and power in the grave. The rich and 
opulent, whose affluent fortunes cause them to be 
so much courted and admired by the world, who 
know not the want of any thing they desire, and 
seem to wallow in happiness, may, from the sig¬ 
nificant ceremony of this day, learn to place no 
confidence in their riches; for dust they are, and 
into dust they shall shortly return. That beau- - 
teous female, in whose countenance and charm¬ 
ing mien all the graces seem to dwell, and who is 
so much the object of admiration, what is she, 
alas! but a painted piece of clay, formed out of 
the dust of the earth, into which she must again 
return. O salutary thought! how effectually dost 
thou pull down our pride, and remove the high 
opinion we entertain of ourselves! The rich and 
mighty are on a level with the poor and indigent, 
and with them must share the same fate. Death 
knows no difference, he seizes on all alike, the 
old and young, rich and poor, high and low, are 
all equally subject to him. Jind as all men are 
formed from dust, so shall they return to dust 
again. 


15 


This lesson the church reads to us this day; 
and the inference we ought to draw from it, is, 
to be careful to prepare ourselves for death. 
This, though it ought to be our greatest concern 
at all times, is an exercise peculiarly suitable to 
the season of Lent; for which reason, the church 
begins this solemn fast with this significant cere¬ 
mony, that by reminding us of our mortality, we 
may seriously apply ourselves to the grand afl’air 
of our salvation. That when death comes, we 
may be found ready and prepared, and that, 
when the body returns to dust, the soul may as¬ 
cend to heaven, and there be received into the so¬ 
ciety of the blessed. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

Eternal, Author of all things! sovereign Lord 
of life and death! imprint on my mind the remem¬ 
brance of my origin and of my last end. Let me 
frequently reflect that I must die. This is the sen¬ 
tence thou hast pronounced upon all men, nor do 
I wish, or seek for an exemption. I submit to 
thy decrees, O wise Disposer of all things, and 
am truly content that my life and death are at thy 
disposal. In thy hands are the moments of my 
life. Thou hast told me I must die, but hast 
mercifully concealed from me both the time when, 
as well as the manner how, in order to preserve 
me from a false and presumptuous security, and 
that 1 might be, at all times ready to obey thy 
call. I bow humbly down and adore the de¬ 
crees of thy merciful providence, O Lord, and 
submit to thy will in all things. One petition I 
earnestly make, and, O my God, may thy good¬ 
ness vouchsafe to grant it! Take me not from 
hence with my sins unpardoned, and before I 
have reconciled myself to thee. Prepare me, 
dear Lord, for thyself, and then, in thine own due 
time, take me to thyself. May I now, at this ho¬ 
ly season, so prepare myself by works of pe¬ 
nance, as hereafter to find mercy at thy hands. 


May I now begin to live to thee, by dail}" dy¬ 
ing to myself and the world. I must one day die, 
and be eternally separated from ail things here. 
How little reason then have I to be fond of what 
I cannot long enjoy, and of which I know not how 
soon I may be deprived !—Must we die? — Yes; 
7ve must die .—How necessary, then is it, that we 
should prepare for death. I acknowledge this 
necessity, O my God, and beg the aid of thy 
grace to assist me in my preparation. 

Withdraw my heart and affections, dear Lord, 
from this vain world, and fix them on thyself 
alone. O may I, in all my works, never forget 
my latter end, but prepare myself for it by the 
constant exercises of a holy life! Then shall my 
happy soul hereafter sing, with joy and triumph, 
O death, where is thy stingO grave, where is 
thy victory.^ Since, by dying, I have gained 
heaven, and a happy eternity. Then shall I for 
ever sing a hymn of praise and thanksgiving to 
^hee, O thou bounteous Author of eternal happi¬ 
ness ! and bless thy name through all eternity. 

THE GOSPEL. 

Matt. vi. 16. 

When you fast be not as hypocrites, sad. 
For they disfigure their faces, that they may ap¬ 
pear to men to fast. Amen I say to you, they 
have received their reward. 17. But thou, when 
thou fastest, anoint thy head, and wash thy face. 

18. That thou appear not to men to fast, but to 
thy father who is in secret: and thy father who 
seeth in secret, will reward thee. 19. Lay not 
up for yourselves treasures on earth; where 
rust and moth consume, and where thieves break 
through and steal. 20. But lay up for yourselves 
treasures in heaven: where neitJier rust nor moth 
doth consume, and where thieves do not break 
through, nor steal. 21. For where thy treasure 
is, there is thy heart also. 


17 


REFLECTIONS. 

In this holy gospel Christ gives us excellent 
instructions relative to fasting, (for, whatever in¬ 
formation he gave his disciples belong to all 
Christians) and hence the church reads them to 
her children, as an useful admonition at the be¬ 
ginning of Lent, that teaching them how, and in 
what manner, they are to observe this apostolical 
fast, they may so discharge its duties, as not to 
deprive themselves of the benefit of so holy an 
institution. 

Our blessed Lord, in the first place, gives us a 
necessary precaution against all pharisaical and 
hypocritical affectation in fasting, or a desire of 
being taken notice of, and commended for it by 
others. This was the crime for which the Phari¬ 
sees were condemned by our Saviour; they 
placed all the merit of their fasting in the exte¬ 
rior. Therefore Christ desires us, as to our out- 
ivard appearance, not to make any alteration that 
may seem to proceed from affectation or vanity, 
that dangerous worm which will devour all the 
fruit of our good works, and make them of no avail. 

Having thus cautioned us against pride and 
hypocrisy in our fasts, Christ instructs us how we 
should fast, so as to merit a reward from our 
heavenly Father. We are now called to the an¬ 
nual observation of Lent, that by a forty days 
fast we may expiate the sins and excesses of 
which we have been guilty; that by doing pe¬ 
nance we may reconcile ourselves to God, whom 
we have offended, and for this purpose we should 
be careful to observe it according to the spirit of 
the church, and with the dispositions of sincere 
penitents. This is what the Apostle calls ‘Uhe 
acceptable time, the day of salvation.'*'^ (2 Cor. vi.) 
The ministers of God, like so many Baptists, 
now exhort us to fly from the wrath to come, 
and bring forth worthy fruits of penance, {Matt. 
iii.) It is by true and sincere repentance, that 


18 


we must render our fasting acceptable to God: 
for if we pay no other regard to this holy season, 
than by making a change in our diet, we shall be 
far from keeping it in the manner God requires. 
The fast which God has chosen, is to loose the 
bands of iniquity, to convert ourselves to him with 
our whole hearts, in fastings weepings and mourn- 
ing^ {Joel ii.) to rend our hearts and not our gar- 
mehts;^~ hp-lrue wfitrition and sorrow for our sins. 
Here God has promised mercy and pardon to 
those who in obedience to the voice of the church, 
relinquish their sinful habits, apply themselves to 
the exercises of mortification, self-denial, retire¬ 
ment, and recollection; to frequent prayer, spi¬ 
ritual reading, alms-deeds, and works of charity, 
without having any other object in view than our 
own spiritual advantage. How infatuated then 
must not those Christians be, wdio neglecting to 
turn so salutary an institution to their benefit, pro¬ 
ceed in their usual careless way; who, whilst 
they comply with the injunction of the church, in 
outward fasting, imbibe nothing of her spirit, but 
instead of doing penance for their sins, rather add 
to their number, by the abuse of the remedies and 
mercies now offered! 

It is not so with the pious Christian, the genu¬ 
ine child of the church. He begins this solemn 
fast with a due sense of the advantages to be reap¬ 
ed from it; he calls to mind the’ excesses and 
negligences of his past life, and condemns him¬ 
self to the wholesome penance of self-denial; he 
endeavours, by diligence and fervour to regain 
what he has lost. Convinced by experience of 
the weakness and corruption of his nature, how 
disposed his passions are to gain the ascendency 
over him, if not suppressed by a prudent restraint, 
he throws the bridle of mortification over them, 
and endeavours to check and subdue them. In a 
word, he enters thoroughly into the sense of the 
church, and observes this holy time according to 
her spirit. And this should be the rule of con¬ 
duct with every one who would keep Lent, and 


19 


reap that spiritual benefit which may be derived 
from it. 

Our blessed Saviour gives us another salutary 
admonition in this gospel, when he says, lay up 
to yourselves treasures in heaven: solid and per¬ 
manent treasures, of which no outward force or 
violence, no secret fraud, or any accident what¬ 
ever can deprive us. Laying up treasures in 
heaven, is the practice of good works^ which will 
follow us beyond the grave, and, like the seed 
sown upon good ground, produce a plentiful har¬ 
vest; whereas all the trouble we take for this 
world, will prove of no advantage. Now the 
present is the season to lay up these heavenly 
treasures: when by fasting, prayer, and self-de¬ 
nial, by works of mercy and charity, we may not 
only cancel the obligations and debts we have 
contracted by our former sloth and negligence, 
but also increase our store, and procure to our¬ 
selves a fund in a bank that will never fail. 

This is the lesson which the church reads to 
all her children in this day’s gospel. She lays 
before them, in the most pressing terms, the ne¬ 
cessity of making the best use of this most ac¬ 
ceptable time, and exhorts them, by her ministers, 
not to defer their sincere conversion, but turn to 
the Lord our God, and to seek him whilst he is 
to be found. To seek him in a sincere arid hum,’ 
hie manner is the only certain way to find him; 
and for our further encouragement, he has pro¬ 
mised to hear us when we call upon him, and 
that we shall find him when we thus seek him. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

It is thus, O my God, that I humble myself in 
thy presence, and with a deep sense of my past 
ingratitude, and frequent abuse of tby mercies, 1 
now desire to seek thee, in prayer and fastings 
that I may obtain pardon of those sins which have 
separated me from thee. Perfect what thou hast 
begun in me, assist me, by thy grace, to find thee, 


20 


and having found thee, dear Lord, by a sincere 
repentance, let me never lose thee again, by re¬ 
lapsing into my former crimes. I come to thee, 
as to the only physician of souls; from thee alone, 
I seek a remedy for all the evils, with which I 
am afflicted. / come to thee, who art the Waxy, 
the Truth, and the Life. Grant that I may never 
more wander from the way which leads to thee. 
I believe in thee, who art the unerring Truth, and 
hope, through a lively faith, and prompt obedi¬ 
ence to thy holy law, to obtain eternal life. 
Thou hast graciously promised to hear those who 
call upon thee; hear then my prayers, and mer¬ 
cifully grant what I ask, to the glory of thy holy 
name, and the eternal benefit of my soul. 

How often, O gracious and merciful Lord, 
hast thou heard me! how often hast thou granted 
my request, and healed my sick and sinful soul.'* 
But, alas! what ungrateful returns have I made 
to thy goodness? O my God! I am covered with 
shame and confusion at the sight of my ingrati¬ 
tude. Yet, O Lord, continue thy mercy to me; 
grant me now true sorrow and contrition for my 
sins, and grace never to offend thee more. 

Ah my God! ’tis the love thou hast for me, 
that makes thee thus lenient towards me; and 
shall I not love thee again? O divine love! come 
and inflame my heart and soul, that I may burn 
with the love of so gracious and loving a God. 
May I constantly and for ever love thee, O thou 
true and only life and happiness of my soul! I will 
love thee and thee alone O Lord, for thou alone 
art the only object worthy of love. For the love 
of thee I will die to the world, and crucify my 
flesh with all its concupiscences. For the love 
of thee I will deny and mortify myself. I wall 
fast, watch, pray, and do penance here, that thou 
mayest spare me hereafter. 


21 


THURSDAY 

BEFORE THE FIRST SUNDAY IN LENT. 

The Gospelj Matt. viii. 5. 

And when we had entered into Capharnaum, 
there came to him a centurion, beseeching him, 

6, And saying: Lord, my servant lieth at home 
sick of the palsy, and is grievously tormented. 

7. And Jesus saith to him: I will come and heal 
him. 8. And the centurion making answer, said. 
Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldst enter 
under my roof: but only say the word, and my ser¬ 
vant shall be healed. 9. For I also am a man 
under authority, having soldiers under me; and I 
say to this man, Go, and he goeth, and to another: 
Come, and be cometh, and to my servant. Do this, 
and he doeth it. 10. And when Jesus heard this, 
he marvelled: and said to them that followed him: 
Amen, I say to you, I have not found so great faith 
in Israel. 11. And I say unto you, that many 
shall come from the east, and the west, and shall 
sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in 
the kingdom of heaven: 12. But the children of 
the kingdom shall be cast out into the exterior 
darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of 
teeth. 13. And Jesus said to the centurion: Go, 
and as thou hast believed, so be it done to thee. 
And the servant was healed at the same hour. 

REFLECTIONS. 

Saint Matthew, in the relation of the centu¬ 
rion speaking to Jesus Christ in behalf of his sick 
servant, presents us with many precepts necessary 
and useful at all times, but particularly applicable 
to the present season. Thus the centurion be¬ 
seeching Christ in behalf of his sick servant, is an 
admirable representation of a penitent sinner de¬ 
sirous to be reconciled to God. We are all, alas! 
sinners, and the church, who earnestly desires we 


22 


should become sincere penitents, now invites us 
to go to Jesus Christ, and beseech him in behalf 
of our souls, grievously afflicted with the palsy 
of sin; and for our encouragement, and assurance 
of success, she lays before us the example of this 
Roman officer, who, as soon as he had heard that 
Jesus was come to Capharnaum, immediately went 
thither, and laid open to him the necessity of his 
domestic, saying; Lord, my servant lieth at home 
sick of the palsy, and is much tormented. In like 
manner, if we desire to recover tlie health of our 
souls, afflicted and dangerously ill under the pres¬ 
sure of evil habits and vicious customs, now is the 
happy time, since Jesus our spiritual physician is 
come down to Capharnaum, we have now an op¬ 
portunity of having recourse to him for our cure: 
but we must make no delay. Let us not then 
think it a matter, which may be postponed; for if 
we refuse to go now, we may not have so favour¬ 
able an opportunity hereafter. When the compas¬ 
sionate Saviour of the world told the centurion 
that he would come and heal his servant, he im¬ 
mediately replied: Lord, I am not worthy that thou 
shouldst enter under my roof. O excellent spirit 
of humility, which always renders both ourselves 
and our petitions acceptable to God. For nothing 
will sooner prevail with him to grant us mercy 
and pardon, than an humble acknowledgment of 
our unworthiness and misery. The prayer of the 
humble shall pierce the clouds, (Eccles.^xxv.) and 
be heard by him, who resisteth the proud and 
giveth grace to the humble. (St. James iv.) Let 
us then humble ourselves in the presence of God, 
and confessing our unworthiness, say sincerely 
with the centurion: Lord lam not worthy that thou 
shouldst enter under my roof. Say but the word 
and my servant shall be healed. He reasoned very 
justly from the condition of life in which himself 
was placed, being one of so much authority as to 
say to his servant. Do this, and it was done, that 
Christ by his superior power need only to speak, 
and his word alone would have sufficient efficacy 
to cure his servant. 


23 


Faith and confidence in God are no less neces¬ 
sary than humility. If then vve desire to obtain 
the pardon of our sins, we must firmly believe 
that God is both able and willing to forgive them. 
As no sin is greater in the sight of God than de¬ 
spair, we must be careful not to place any obstacle 
in the way of his mercy by our diffidence; the 
shield of faith, and a firm confidence in his good¬ 
ness, is our best defence, to which he thus en¬ 
courages us saying: »ds I live I desire not the death 
of a sinner, bat rather that he be converted and live. 
(Ezek. xxxiii.) Come unto me, all you that labour 
and are burdened, and I will refresh you. (Matt, 
xi.) Ah! what greater encouragement can we de¬ 
sire.^ Let us then approach him, at this holy time, 
with the humility and faith of the centurion, and 
with him we shall be accepted. Go, and as thou 
hast believed, be it done unto thee; and at the very 
hour his servant was healed. O happ^ effect of a 
lively faith! The same will be produced in the 
souls of those sincere penitents, who, in like man¬ 
ner, have recourse to God; to such he will mer¬ 
cifully say: Son be of good heart, thy sins are 
Jorgiven thee. (Matt, ix.) 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O Jesu.s, Saviour of the world! speak those 
consoling words to my soul! Ah, dearest Lord, 
behold I am sick and infirm, grievously torment¬ 
ed and sorely troubled; speak but the word, and I 
shall be healed. Thy power is great, thy mercy 
also is great, thou art therefore able and willing 
to forgive. Pardon me then, and deliver me from 
the heavy burden of my sins. I acknowledge my 
unworthiness, and have just reason to fear the ri¬ 
gour of thy justice: but I will trust in thy infinite 
goodness. I cannot offend more than thou canst 
forgive; and 1 firmly believe there is no sin so 
great which thou wilt not pardon upon a sincere 
repentance. Say then to me, as thou didst to the 
centurion: Go, and as thou hast believed, be it 


done unto thee: and from that moment having ob¬ 
tained the health of my soul, I will praise and 
glorify thy holy name. 

May thy holy name be for ever blessed and 
praised by all creatures, O thou true and only 
physician of souls! may all poor sinners, who like 
me, have experienced thy goodness, be grateful 
to thee; and, Omay I nevermore abuse thy boun¬ 
ty, nor forget the favours thou hast shown me. 
Preserve me, dear Lord, from relapsing again in¬ 
to those sins from which thou hast delivered me. 
May I daily endeavour to please thee, and increase 
in thy love. I desire to love thee above all things, 
and all other things only in and for thee. I can 
only be happy in loving thee, and am truly miser¬ 
able when I do not love thee. May thy sweet 
love wholly possess my heart and soul until I come 
to possess, and enjoy thee in heaven. 


FRIDAY 

BEFORE THE FIRST SUNDAY IN LENT. 

The Gospel, Matt. v. 43. vi. 1. 

You have heard that it hath been said: thou 
shall love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. 
44. But I say to you, love your enemies, do good 
to them that hate you; and pray for them that per¬ 
secute and calumniate you. 45. That you may 
be the children of your father who is in heaven, 
who maketh his sun to rise upon the good and bad, 
and raineth upon the just and unjust. 46.- For if 
you love them that love you, what reward shall 
you have.^ do not even the publicans the same? 
47. And if you salute your brethren only, what do 
you more? do not also the heathens the same? 48. 
Be you therefore perfect, as also your heavenly 
Father is perfect. C. vi. 1, Take heed that you 
do not your justice before men, to be seen by them: 
otherwise you shall not have a reward of your fa- 


25 


ther, who is in heaven. 2. Therefore when thou 
doest an alms-deed, sound not a trumpet before 
thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and 
in the streets, that they may be honoured by men. 
Amen, I say to you, they have received their re¬ 
ward. 3. But when tliou dost alms, let not thy 
left hand know what thy right hand doth. 4. 
That thy alms may be in secret, and thy Father 
who seeth in secret will repay thee. 

REFLECTIONS. 

This gospel is taken from our blessed Saviour’s 
divine sermon on the mount, wherein, after hav¬ 
ing declared that he came not to destroy the law 
and the prophets, but to fulfil them, he shows to 
how much higher a degree of perfection he raises 
the Christian institute, above the law of Moses. 
The supreme excellence of the gospel appears no 
less wonderful in the extensive precepts of charity 
here delivered, than in the manner wherein Christ 
would have us bestow alms, and perform works of 
mercy to the poor; Love your emmies, says he, 
and do good to those that hate you. However dif¬ 
ficult this command may seem to our corrupt na¬ 
ture, so prone to bear malice and seek revenge, 
yet it is positive nor can any one be a disciple of 
Christ without observing it. It is not a counsel, 
but a precept that carries with it the distinguish¬ 
ing character of a true Christian. Though it ap¬ 
pears hard and difficult to nature, yet by the help 
of divine grace it will become easy and pleasant. 
Christ here requires nothing of us but what we 
may perform by the assistance of his grace, and 
of which, not only he himself has set us an admi¬ 
rable example in his own person, but also in that 
of Joseph towards his envious brethren; David 
towards Saul; besides the examples of the apos¬ 
tles, of St. Stephen the protomartyr, and innumer¬ 
able other saints. This is the sublime perfection 
of the Christian law; for, if we love only our 
friends, or those who deserve our affection by 


26 


their friendly offices, what do we more than the 
Jews or Heathens? Therefore Christ says, Be 
you perfect^ as your heavenly Father is perfect ; by 
lovdng your enemies, forgiving injuries, and doing 
good to those that hate you. 

To this precept which must be observed by all 
Christians^ because it is the command of their di¬ 
vine Master, may also be added, the regard we 
ought to have to our own eternal interest, which 
essentially depends upon the practice of this duty; 
for Christ lias positively said, that unless we for¬ 
give others their trespasses, neither will our 
heavenly Father forgive ours, (Ma,ft.\i. and vil.) 
and further, that the same measure we give to 
others shall be returned to us again. For which 
reason we are taught to say in the fiOrd’s Prayer, 
Forgive us our trespasses^ as we forgive them that 
trespass against us. If then, when we say this 
prayer, we at the same time bear a hatred to any 
one, and refuse to pardon him his offences, do we 
not in reality desire of God that he would not for¬ 
give us our sins ? Ah! ought not this consideration 
alone, then readily induce us sincerely to forgive 
all those who have offended us. 

This is that Christian spirit of charity, which 
forbids us to be at enmity with others, and by 
which we ought so to live, as to prevent, as much 
as possible, others being at enmity with us. If 
therefore there should be any, who either with or 
without a cause, are our enemies, it is our duty al¬ 
ways to show a prompt desire of reconciliation, 
but more especially at this time of Lent, wffien 
Christians are supposed to go to the altar more 
frequently, and with more than ordinary devotion. 
But they must be guided by the spirit of sincere 
charity, if they desire to render themselves and 
their devotions acceptable to God. 

Having established this branch of the precept 
of charity on its most noble and perfect basis, our 
blessed Saviour proceeds to give us instructions 
on another, that of giving alms according to our 
ability, and showing mercy to the poor. Thus he 


27 


exhorts us, not to give alms with pomp or osten¬ 
tation, lest the merit and reward of them should 
evaporate, and be lost in the smoke and pride of 
vanity. For although alms given with the wsound 
of trumpet may make a great noise on earth, yet 
they will never mount up to heaven. Private 
charities are therefore more acceptable to God, 
a^d beneficial to ourselves. Nor need we require 
any witness of what we do, since it is enough that 
God sees us, who can and will reward us. Yet 
we are not to take these words of our blessed Sa¬ 
viour in the strict literal sense, for public charities 
or distributions of alms to the poor may be given, 
without any mixture of pride or vanity, with a 
pure and charitable intention, and then they not 
only edify our neighbour, but are also pleasing to 
God. St. Gregory gives us an excellent rule, to 
reconcile the seeming difference between giving 
alms in secret, and doing good works before men, 
that they may be edified, and glorify God. “ What 
“ we do, let us so do it, as not to seek or desire 
“ human applause. Let the good work be done 
“ publicly, but let the intention be secret, that we 
“ may by our good works, excite others to follow 
“ our example, and yet, by the purity of our in- 
“ tention, seek only to please God, desiring they 
“ should be known to him.” St. Greg. Horn. 
W. in Evang. It is thus we may preserve our¬ 
selves from pride and vanity, whilst we observe 
the injunctions laid upon us by our divine Master. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

Adorable Jesus! grant me the grace to obey 
thy holy precepts. In obedience to thee, I will 
love my greatest enemies, and do good to those 
who hate me. For the love of thee, I sincerely 
forgive all who do me any manner of wrong, and 
for every injury, I desire thou wouldst bestow on 
them some special grace here, and a particular de¬ 
gree of glory hereafter. 


My Lord and my God! grant me, I beseech 
thee, purity of intention, that in all my actions I 
may seek nothing but thy honour and glory, de¬ 
siring that my good works may be known to thee 
alone. Preserve me from vanity and ostentation, 
that I may so effectually contemn the praises of 
men, as never to seek or covet their esteem. Ah, 
my G od! all their praises cannot make me better 
than what I really am in thy sight. Let me choose 
to be little in the eyes of men, and great in thine, 
for in this alone does true greatness and virtue 
consist. 

O my soul! what is the world but an empty no¬ 
thing.^ what then can we expect from it.^ Shall 
we, to please it, and gain its vain applause, hazard 
the loss of God’s favour and approbation May 
I never O my God, be guilty of such extravagant 
folly. Whatever I do, shall be done with a pure 
intention to please thee alone. Thy love and thy 
favour is all 1 seek for. Let the world despise, 
and every one slight me; if I am but approved of 
by thee, it will be more than sulficient, and I shall 
be abundantly happy. This is the only felicity 
after which I aspire, and for this will I labour, 
by loving and serving thee, for thy sake alone, to 
the end of my life. 

— 

SATURDAY 

BEFORE THE FIRST SUNDAY IN LENT. 

The Gospel, Mark vi. 46. 

And when he had dismissed them, he went up 
to the mountain to pray. 47. And when it was 
late, the ship was in the midst of the sea, and he 
alone on the land. 48. And seeing them labour¬ 
ing in rowing (for the wind was against them) and 
about the fourth watch of the night he cometh to 
them walking upon the sea, and he would have 
passed by them. 49. But they seeing him walk- 


29 


ing upon the sea, thought it was an apparition, 
and they cried out. 50. For they all saw him, 
and were troubled. And immediately he spoke 
with them, and said to them: Have a good heart, 
it is I, fear ye not. 51. And he went up to them 
into the ship, and the wind ceased. And they 
were far more astonished within themselves. 52. 
For they understood not concerning the loaves: 
for their hearts were blinded. 53. And when 
they had passed over, they came into the land of 
Genesareth, and set to the shore. 54. And when 
they were gone out of the ship, immediately they 
knew him. 55. And running through that whole 
country they began to carry about in beds those 
that were sick, where they heard he was. 56. 
And whithersoever he entered into towns or into 
villages, or cities, they laid the sick in the streets, 
and besought him that they might touch but the 
hem of his garment: and as many as touched him 
were made whole. 

REFIiECTIONS. 

There cannot be a more lively picture of the 
labour, toil, and continual disappointments of a 
worldly life, than what is here represented by 
the evangelist, of the apostles labouring against 
contrary winds, in the absence of their divine 
Master. After Christ had, by an illustrious mi¬ 
racle, fed five thousand men with five barley loaves 
and two fishes, he obliged his disciples to cross 
the water before him to Bethsaida, whilst he dis¬ 
missed the multitude, and then retired to a moun¬ 
tain to pray. The disciples, in obedience to his 
orders, embarked; but having advanced in the 
midst of the sea, and the winds being contrary, 
they could not bring the ship to the shore: they la¬ 
boured in vain, till about the fourth watch of the 
night, Jesus came to their assistance, and entering 
into the ship, the wind ceased, and they soon ar¬ 
rived at the desired landing-place. 


30 


This world is justly compared to a sea, over 
which all Christians, as disciples of Christ, are 
obliged to pass, in order to arrive at the haven of 
eternal beatitude; but without his assistance, they 
find insuperable difficulties, and, unable to advance 
towards the desired port, remain every moment 
in danger of sinking. Such is the case with all 
those, who, though embarked in the ship of the 
Catholic Church, yet may be truly said to want 
the company of Jesus, by not living according to 
his spirit, and the maxims of his gospel: whose 
thoughts and desires continually aspire after the 
possession of the riches, honours, and pleasures 
of this world. Such can never hope to arrive at 
happiness, whilst the contrary winds raised by 
their inordinate affections, prevent them from 
making any advances towards the heavenly port. 
This will appear evident, when we consider the 
opposition that exists between the spirit of Christ, 
and the spirit of the world. We may indeed la¬ 
bour at the oar, by some external shew of religion 
or form of piety; but we shall never be able to 
advance, unless Jesus, by the spirit of humility, 
self-denial, contempt of this world, and a love of 
heavenly things be at the helm. 

Worldlings, alas! are unwilling to believe that 
all their solicitude for the attainment of the joys 
of this life, is no better than rowing against the 
tide. Contrary to faith, as well as experience, 
they seek for happiness where it is not to be found. 
In this lukewarm age, the number of those who 
make an exterior profession of religion, without 
attending to the practice of the duties which it in¬ 
culcates, is more considerable than ever. 

What then has the sincere Christian to do, but 
to beg the presence of Jesus, that under his pro¬ 
tection, and by his assistance, he may be enabled 
to weather the storm; for he cannot expect to sail 
through the turbulent ocean of this life, without 
meeting contrary winds. And from the case of 
the apostles, in this day’s gospel, he may learn 
not only the difficulties and dangers of a worldly 


31 


life; but also, that even a life of virtue and piety 
itself, is not exempt from many severe trials. 
Christ ordered his apostles to go on board the 
ship, and to cross the water without him, though 
he foresaw the difficulties and troubles they had to 
encounter, not only to convince them how neces¬ 
sary his presence was, and how little they could 
do without him, but also to put their faith and 
confidence to the trial. Although he was corpo¬ 
rally absent, yet he was present with them in 
spirit. They rowed and laboured, but could not 
advance forward, the winds being contrary, never¬ 
theless he preserved them, and prevented the wind 
from oversetting their vessel. In this condition 
they remained several hours, when about the 
fourth watch of the night he appeared walking 
on the sea. Aftrighted at the sight, they suppos¬ 
ed it to have been an apparition; but he soon calm¬ 
ed their fears, and the moment he entered the 
ship, the storm ceased, and they landed in safety. 
O admirable representation of the conduct which 
God occasionally observes towards his most 
faithful servants! Sometimes he seems to with¬ 
draw himself from them, at least as to any sensi¬ 
ble proof of his presence, and leaves them, as it 
were, to struggle against the contrary winds of 
the difficulties and obstacles they meet with, which 
of themselves they are not able to overcome, 
though they labour and strive ever so indefatiga- 
bly to advance forward. This he does out of 
love, to convince them how little they can do of 
themselves, and how absolutely they must depend 
on his gracious assistance, who, though he may 
absent himself from them for a time, will return 
again when they least expect him, and by his ap¬ 
pearance calm their fears and apprehensions. In 
a moment he will command the winds to abate, 
and guide the vessel safe into the desired port. 

This consideration must aflbrd us great comfort 
under all our interior desolations and darkness of 
soul, and enable us to bear up against all opposi¬ 
tion, either from the world or our own corrupt na- 


32 


ture. The principal lesson therefore we are to 
learn from the gospel of this day, is, to put our 
sole confidence in God, and not despond or think 
ourselves abandoned when we have not a sensible 
perception of the presence of Christ. He inces¬ 
santly beholds us, and knows the most proper 
time when to appear, and say. It is I: he not afraid. 
Wherefore we must, like the apostles, continue 
labouring at the oar, or, in other words, we must 
continue to do our best; until Christ comes to our 
assistance; but we must leave the time and man¬ 
ner of his visitation to himself. We may earnest¬ 
ly cry out: Lord save us. Come, Lord Jesus, come 
quickly ; but we must add, in thine own time. Thy 
loill, not mine, he done. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O Saviour of my soul! behold me in the vast 
sea of this world directing my course towards 
the port of everlasting happiness. But alas! the 
winds are contrary, the sea is rough, and with all 
my labour and toil I cannot advance forward. 
But how can it be otherwise, O Lord, since thou 
art absent, and leavest me to myself. O come and 
manifest thyself to me, show the power of thy 
grace, in quieting all the storms raised by my un¬ 
ruly passions. Calm the winds and bid them to 
cease. Say to the sea: Be still. Thy powerful 
word can allay the most violent storm; wherefore, 
if thou appearest and dost enter my vessel, it will 
soon arrive at the wished-for haven. My whole 
trust and confidence is placed in thee, and I hum¬ 
bly resign myself to all the dispensations of thy 
blessed will. Suffer me not to be lost in the hurry 
and tumult of worldly affairs, and in an ardent 
pursuit of the goods of this life. Let me not be 
immoderately busied about many things, since one 
thing only is necessary, that is, to love and serve 
thee. 

This, O my God, I consider as my only affair, 
to which all other concerns shall be subservient. 


33 


Ill loving thee, I shall be completely happy; but 
if I do not love thee, I shall be truly miserable. 
Thou commandest me to love thee: give me then 
what thou commandest, and command what thou 
pleasest. Thou hast created my heart for thy¬ 
self. O may it never be at rest till it reposes in 
thee, who art the divine fountain of love. Let 
then those sweet streams of affection flow upon 
my soul, that it may be wholly absorbed in the 
love of thee my God. 


FIRST SUNDAY IN LENT. 

The Gospel^ Matt. Cap. 4. v. I. 

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the de¬ 
sert, to be tempted by the devil. 2. And when 
he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was 
afterwards hungry. 3. And the tempter coming, 
said to him: If thou be the Son of God, command 
that these stones be made bread. 4. But he an¬ 
swered, and said: It is written, JVot by bread 
alone doth man live, but by every word that prooeed- 
eth out of the mouth of God. 5. Then the devil 
took him up into the holy city, and set him upon 
a pinnacle of the temple. 6. And said to him: 
If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down, for 
it is written: He hath given his angels charge over 
thee, and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest 
perhaps thou dash thy foot against a stone. 7. 
Jesus said to him: It is written again. Thou shall 
not tempt the Lord thy God. 8 . Again the devil 
took him up into a very high mountain: and show¬ 
ed him all the kingdoms of the world, and the 
glory of them. 9. And said to him: All these 
will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and adore 
me. 10. Then Jesus said to him: Begone; Satan, 
for it is written. The Lord thy God thou shall 
adore, and him only shall thou serve. 11. Then 
the devil left him; and behold angels came and 
ministered unto him. 


34 


REFLECTIONS. 

However extraordinary it may appear, that 
Jesus Christ should retire into the desert to be 
tempted, or however bold and insolent it may 
seem in the devil thus to attack the Son of God; 
yet when we consider the design of our blessed 
Lord in tliis particular, we discover a more won¬ 
derful effect of his love in our regard^ as it was 
not for his own, but for our advantage, that after 
his example we might learn to fly from the world, 
mortify and subdue our passions, and thereby be 
enabled to resist the temptations we must expect 
to meet from the devil, who, like a cunning ad¬ 
versary, watches incessantly to attack us with 
advantage, when he may either surprise our neg¬ 
ligence, or prevail upon our w^eakness. 

To fly from an enemy, when w^e are his supe¬ 
rior or equal in strength, is a mark of cow^ardice: 
but to retreat from one more powerful than our¬ 
selves, and w'ho has a great many advantages over 
us, is not cowardice, but discretion; it is acting 
according to the rules of prudence, to secure our¬ 
selves by a seasonable retirement, rather than ex¬ 
pose ourselves rashly to the fatal consequences 
of an unequal combat. The world may on many 
accounts be esteemed our enemy, and therefore 
our greatest security from its dangers, is by a re¬ 
treat. But by retiring from the world, is not here 
meant a total separation from it, like that of the 
ancient fathers in the desert, or those who are 
called by God to the privacy of a cloister; such 
a retreat is certainly of great advantage to those 
who aspire after perfection in the contemplative 
way; but as for those who are called to an active 
life, whose duty it is, amidst the incumbrances of 
tbe wwld, to endeavour to serve God and secure 
their own salvation, the retreat recommended to 
them is a solitude of heart and retirement of spi¬ 
rit, by weaning our affections from too great an at¬ 
tachment to the enjoyments of this world: though 


35 


to these also an occasional retirement from the 
hurry of business, or the vain amusements of life, 
as far as the circumstances of every one’s state 
will permit, is here recommended from the ex¬ 
ample of our Saviour. 

As the most regular clocks must be sometimes 
taken to pieces, in order to cleanse them from the 
dust which they insensibly collect, so the most 
fervent piety may gradually cool, and the most 
exemplary Cliristian fall into some practical er¬ 
ror; for the cure of which, as well as to re-kin- 
dle the fire of devotion, retirement and recollec¬ 
tion will l>e found indispensably necessary, for the 
following reasons: first, because the world is not 
only replete with dangers which render salvation 
extremely difficult, but also because under the 
specious appearance of comforts and delights, in 
the pursuit of which the mind is continually agi¬ 
tated, we find nothing but crosses and disappoint¬ 
ments, ever seeking after what can afford us no 
other consolation, than the wretched pleasure of 
exchanging a present for a future misery. 

There is another consideration which should 
induce us to abandon all affection for the world, 
that to walk in its waijs is no better than treading 
the paths of deaths and the broad way which leads 
to everlasting misery. It is a sacred truth deliver¬ 
ed by the mouth of Jesus Christ himself, that in 
order to be saved we must fly from the world, if 
not in effect, at least in heart and desire; we 
must carry our cross, deny ourselves, and follow 
his footsteps in the narrow paths of penance and 
mortification. But, alas! how can this be done.^ 
by following the world, or governing ourselves 
by its maxims.^ Ah! let us not deceive ourselves. 
The gospel assures us, that no one can serve two 
masters; we cannot serve God and Mammon, 
(Ijuke xvi.) Since God alone then is the only pure 
fountain of happiness, let us not seek for it, but in 
himself and his service. Let us abandon the 
world, in which nothing is to be found but trouble, 
and disappointments; uncertain satisfactions here, 


and the germ of everlasting misery liereafter. 
Thougli engaged in the world by our necessary 
affairs and the duties of our station, let us not be 
corrupted by its maxims, but preserve our hearts 
uncontaminated, by solitude and retirement of 
spirit, after the example of Jesus our master. 

Another important truth exhibited to us by the 
fasting and retirement of our Saviour, is to mor¬ 
tify and subdue our passions, that we may be en¬ 
abled to overcome the temptations to which we 
are exposed in the world. The Son of God not 
only retired into the desert, but there mortified 
himself by the rigorous observance of a long fast, 
not for his own, but for our sins; and to convince 
us that in order to secure our eternal salvation, 
we must not only retire from the vanities of the 
world, but also mortify and keep our passions in 
subjection, lest otherwise they should become 
our masters, and reduce us to the most degrading 
servitude. If we gratify the desires of the flesh 
we weaken the spirit, and render it unable to re¬ 
sist the attacks of the enemy. By pampering and 
nourishing our bodies, by indulging our appetites 
and gratifying our sensual inclinations, we add 
fuel to the fire of concupiscence, and furnish our 
adversary with arms against ourselves. Alas! 
how can we expect to overcome the temptations 
to which we are daily exposed by a life of soft¬ 
ness and sensuality. A life so very opposite to 
the character of a Christian, and the maxims of a 
gospel, which every where exhorts us to the 
practice of penance and mortification. It is for 
this purpose that we are called to the observance 
of Lent, that we might in some measure, follow 
the example of our Divine Master, who, when the 
devil tempted him to change stones into bread, 
replied: Man livelh not by bread only; hereby 
intimating, that although corporal food be neces¬ 
sary for the support of the body, which is but a 
part, and the less noble part of man; and as the 
soul is infinitely more valuable than the body, it 
is for the welfare of the latter that we should 


be most solicitous, being continually exposed to 
the assaults of its enemies: we must therefore en¬ 
deavour to preserve it by a diligent use of those 
arms wlierewith God has furnished us; nor can 
our enemies be ever able to prevail against us, 
except through our own sloth and negligence.. 
The devil may assault and tempt us, as he did 
our Saviour, but he cannot force us; he can only 
solicit and importune, but he can never oblige us 
to commit sin. God has left us at liberty: he 
has endowed us with free will, and offers us the 
assistance of his grace, hy which we may reject 
all temptations of the devil. Resist him then, 
and he will fly from you, as he did from Jesus 
Christ. 


ASPIRATIONS. 

O adorable Saviour of mankind, how much am 
I indebted to thy goodness! Thou didst retire 
into the desert; thou didst fast and pray, and 
permit thyself to be tempted by the devil, that 
following thy example, I might also overcome 
him. Lead me then, dear Lord, into an internal 
solitude, and let me fly from the vanities and dan¬ 
gers of the world. O may I never rashly expose 
myself to danger, nor fall a prey to the enemy, 
through my own imprudence or weakness. O let 
me die to the world, that I may live only to thee; 
may I for thy love, despise all the enjoyments 
of this life. O replenish my soul with such se¬ 
raphic flames, as may burn and consume all 
earthly desires. Since thou art my true and only 
happiness, thee only do I wish for, and after thee 
only do I seek. Here will I mortify myself, and 
keep my irregular passions in subjection, that 
tliey may no more rise in rebellion against thee, 
or cause me to transgress thy holy law. 

O adorable Jesus! if the devil had the rash¬ 
ness to attack thy incomparable sanctity, thy in¬ 
vincible strength, thy consummate virtue, what is 
it that he will not undertake against such a poor, 
S 


38 


weak, and feeble creature as I am. O divine 
Jesus! how can I prevail against so powerful and 
crafty an enemyI know, O my God! that thou 
wilt not permit him to tempt me beyond my 
strength. I can always vanquish him by the as¬ 
sistance of thy grace, and this thou art always 
ready and willing to grant me. O victorious 
conqueror of sin and death! come to my assist¬ 
ance. Defend me from this roaring lion. May 
I be safe from his fury under the shadow of thy 
wings. O infinite bounty! open the treasures of 
thy mercy. Strengthen my weakness, and assist 
me that I may fight with courage and resolution, 
till I obtain a complete victory over all the ene¬ 
mies of my soul, to the honour and glory of thy 
adorable name, sweet Jesus, my God and All. 


MONDAY 

IN THE FIRST WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, Matt. xxv. 31. 

And when the Son of Man shall come in his 
majesty, and all the angels with him, then shall 
he sit upon the seat of his majesty. 32, And all 
nations shall be gathered together before him, 
and he shall separate them one from another, as 
the shepherd separateth the sheep from the goats: 
33. And he shall set the sheep on the right hand, 
but the goats on the left. 34. Then shall the 
king say to them that shall be on his right hand: 
Come, ye blessed of my Father, possess the king¬ 
dom prepared for you from the foundation of the 
w^orld. 35. For I was hungry, and you gave me 
to eat: I was thirsty, and you gave me to drink: 
I was a stranger, and you took me in: 36. Na¬ 
ked, and you clothed me: sick, and you visited 
me: I was in prison, and you came to me. 37. 
Then shall the just answer him, saying: Lord, 
when did we see thee hungry, and fed thee: 


39 


thirsty, and gave thee drink? 38. And wlien did 
we see thee a stranger, and took thee in: or na¬ 
ked, and clothed thee? 39. Or when did we see 
thee sick, or in prison, and came to thee? 40. 
And the king answering, shall say to them: Amen 
I say to you, as long as you did it to one of these 
my least brethren, you did it to me. 41. Then 
shall he say to them also that be on his left hand: 
Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire 
which was prepared for the devil and his angels. 

42. For I was hungry, and you gave me not to 
eat: I was thirsty, and you gave me not to drink. 

43. I was a stranger, and you took me not in; 
naked, and you clothed me not: sick, and in pri¬ 
son, and you did not visit me. 44. Then shall 
they also answer him, saying: Lord, when did 
we see thee hungry or thirsty, or a stranger, or 
naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister 
to thee? 45. Then he shall answer them, say¬ 
ing: Amen I say to you, as long as you did it not 
to one of these least ones, neither did you it to 
me. 46. And these shall go into everlasting 
punishment; but the just into life everlasting. 

REFLECTIONS. 

Of all the truths of the Christian Religion, none 
requires our serious consideration more than the 
last judgment, as a forgetfulness thereof, ora neg¬ 
lect to prepare for it, must be attended with the 
most fatal consequences. The church, in the gos¬ 
pel, states the account which Jesus Christ gives 
of the proceedings of the last day, together with 
the manner of his coming to judgment, and the 
different sentences he will pronounce upon the 
wicked and the righteous, that beholding its ter¬ 
rors, and the strict judgment we must then under¬ 
go, we may be excited to a speedy and sincere re¬ 
pentance for our past sins, and to the exercise of 
those works of mercy, which alone can inspire us 
with a just confidence to stand before our Saviour, 
when he shall come to judge all mankind accord- 


40 


ing to their deserts, Let us then enter at pre¬ 
sent into tliose pious sentiments of the cliurch, 
and entertain our thoughts with suitable reflec¬ 
tions on the manner of our blessed Lord’s coming 
to judgment, and of those great transactions where¬ 
in each individual of the posterity of Mam must 
bear his part. 

The first coming of our blessed Saviour was in 
his mercy^ with great humility and poverty, to 
save the world; but his second coming will be in 
his justice., with infinite glory and majesty, to 
judge and condemn it. He will then appear like 
himself, the Son of God, attended by all the pow¬ 
ers of heaven, as so many ministers to execute 
his orders. Then, on the dreadful trumpet’s pierc¬ 
ing the silent graves with the awful summons, 
Rise, ye dead, and come to judgment, all mankind 
shall appear^before the throne of God, every one 
to be placed according to their merits, either on 
his right or left hand: the just on one side, and 
the wicked on the other. Then will be brouglit 
forth that tremendous volume, wherein are re¬ 
corded all our thoughts, words, and actions; and 
after undergoing a strict and severe account, as to 
the manner in which we have lived and died, we 
shall accordingly be either approved or condemn¬ 
ed. The righteous shall then meet with a public 
approbation of their piety, and be invited by Jesus 
Chi ist to the participation of eternal happiness; 
whilst the wicked shall hear the terrible sentence 
of their own condemnation, and be doomed to suf¬ 
fer eternal misery in punishment of their crimes 
and for not having exercised works of charity to¬ 
wards others. 

Here let us observe the order in which Christ 
wdll proceed to judgment. In the first place he 
wdll address himself to the just, and invite them to 
take possession of the kingdom of heaven. O 
w hat an addition to the confusion of the w icked 
when they shall behold those, whom they hereto¬ 
fore held in so much scorn and contempt, now ex¬ 
alted so far above them, called to the possession 


41 


of eternal happiness, whilst they hear themselves 
condemned for ever to the dreadful flames of hell. 
This terrible sentence, Go ye cursed into everlast- 
ing fire, shall no sooner be pronounced, than the 
unfortunate wretches must siiik into the bottom¬ 
less pit, there to remain in torments for ever, 
whilst the just shall ascend in joy and triumph, to 
reign eternally with Christ in the kingdom of 
heaven. 

It may be useful to consider the causes assign¬ 
ed by the Judge, for his approbation of the just, 
and condemnation of the wicked. He does not 
say. Come ye blessed of my Father, because ye 
have believed in me, and professed the Christian 
Religion; no; but because I was hungry, and you 
gave me to eat, <^c. and as you have done it to one 
of the least of these my brethren, you have done 
it to me. From whence it is evident that faith 
alone will not justify us, but that to faith must be 
added a practical piety: and that, by performing 
works of mercy and charity to the poor, we do 
them to Christ himself, who will thus reward us 
at the last day. In like manner Christ does not 
reproach the wicked with a want of faith, nor 
condemn them for not believing his gospel, but 
wdth a want of charity, in not joining the practi¬ 
cal part of religion to their belief. Hence he 
tells them, that having refused mercy and charity 
to the poor, they refused it to him. Behold then 
the sad cause of their condemnation: trusting to 
an empty faith, and an outward profession of reli¬ 
gion, they neglected the discharge of its practical 
duties: for which reason, knowing their Masters 
icill, and not having done it, they shall be beaten 
with many stripes, (Luke xii.) and suffer the dire¬ 
ful effects of their impiety and folly. 

That we may escape so dreadful a fate, let us 
now whilst we have time, do good, according to 
the advice of the apostle, (GaZ. vi.) and for this 
end, let us frequently consider the last day, and 
what appearance we shall then be able to make 
before our sovereign Judge, 0 that we were wise 


42 


and would consider ; for though we may now hear 
or read of these things as if they were at a great 
distance, yet tliey will certainly one day arrive, 
and perhaps sooner than we imagine. But alasf 
when the awful period conies, we shall lind our¬ 
selves deeply concerned: the wicked will then 
earnestly w ish to have repented, and wdll wish in 
vain for a little time. The use we ought to make 
of these reflections, is, to resolve to do penance 
for our sins, and exercise ourselves in such acts of 
charity and good w^orks, as will secure us on that 
tremendous day, w hen our eternal lot will be finally 
decided, and wdien we shall be either rewarded 
or punished, according to our deeds in this world. 

ASPIRATIONS, 

O sovereign Judge of the world, before w^hom 
all mankind must one day appear! impress on my 
soul a wholesome fear of thy judgments. I trem¬ 
ble, O Lord, when I reflect on the strict account 
I must one day give, and desire to appeal from 
the bar of thy justice to the throne of thy mercy. 
I implore pardon for my past negligences, and 
crave the assistance of thy grace to amend my 
life. Thou hast called me to the knowdedge of 
the true faith: O let me then be ever careful to 
adorn it with good works and mercy to the poor, 
according to my ability. May I here shew my¬ 
self a good and faithful servant, that when thou 
shalt come, and call me to account, I may deserve 
to be approved and rewarded by thee. Let me 
have the account I must hereafter render always 
before my eyes, that I may never grow negligent 
or slothful in thy service, nor hazard my eternal 
happiness, by a neglect of my duty towards thee. 

“ Deliver me, O Lord, from eternal death in 
“ that dreadful day wdien the heavens and earth 
“ shall be moved, when thou shalt come to judge 
“ the world by fire. I tremble and am sore afraid 
‘‘ W'hen the examination is to be, and thy wrath 
“ to come. When the heavens and earth shall 


43 


be moved, and when thou shalt come to judge 
“ the world by fire, That day is a day of anger, 
“ of calamity, and of misery, a great day, and 
“ very hitter: when thou shalt come to judge the 
“ world by fire. Wo is me, O Lord, because I 
“ have sinned exceedingly in my life. O wretch, 
‘‘ what shall I do.^ whither shall I fly, but to thee, 
“ my God.!* Have mercy on me, when thou comest 
at the latter day. Remember not my sins when 
‘‘ thou shalt come to judge the world by fire. 
“ Have mercy on me, O God, and save me.” Ex, 
Off. Defunct. 


TUESDAY 

IN THE FIRST WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, Matt, xxi, 10. 

And when he was come into Jerusalem, the 
whole city was moved, saying: Who is this.? 11. 
And the people said: This is Jesus the prophet 
from Nazareth of . Galilee. 12. And Jesus went 
into the temple of God, and cast out all them that 
sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the 
tables of the money-changers, and the chairs of 
them that sold doves: 13. And he saith to them: 
It is written. My house shall be called the house 
of prayer: but you have made it a den of thieves. 
14. And the blind and tlie lame came to him in 
the temple; and he healed them. 15. And when 
the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonder¬ 
ful things that he did, and the children crying in 
the temple, and saying. Hosanna to the Son of 
David; they were moved with indignation. 16. 
And said to him: hearest thou what these say.? 
And Jesus said to them: Yea, have you never 
read; Out of the mouth of infants and of suck¬ 
lings thou hast perfected praise.? 17. And leav¬ 
ing them he went out of the city into Bethania 
ancf remained there. 


44 


REFLECTIONS. 

From the conduct of Jesus Christ, as related 
in this gospel, we may easily comprehend how 
offensive it is to God to profane his temples by a 
want of respect and reverence at public wor¬ 
ship. Jesus, the most meek and mild Jesus, who 
never expressed the least resentment for the inju¬ 
ries he received from the Jews, nor anger for 
their unjust calumnies against his sacred person 
and doctrine, entering the temple, and seeing it 
profaned by buyers and sellers, and those who 
had banks for changing of money, moved with 
zeal and indignation, he drove them out, with the 
severe reproach, that they had converted the tem¬ 
ple of God, his house of prayer, into a den of 
thieves. To be wanting in respect for, or to abuse 
the house of God, must therefore be considered 
uS no trivial c^ffence, since we here observe it* 
perpetrators so severely treated by our blessed 
Lord, who on this occasion seems to lay aside 
that sweetness and mildness he had always mani¬ 
fested towards the greatest sinners. 

Ah! would to God that the Jews were the only 
persons that could be found guilty of so criminal 
an abuse of the house of God. But alas! are 
there not too many Christians, who although they 
frequently hear and read this passage of the gos¬ 
pel, have yet the temerity to commit the same 
crime? Yes, they profane the churches of the 
living God, infinitely more august and venerable 
than the temple of Solomon. They turn those 
houses of prayer into dens of thieves by robbing 
God of that honour and respect which is due to 
him, and which he justly requires from all that 
present themselves before him at his public wor¬ 
ship. Must not they therefore expect a more se¬ 
vere punishment than the Jews, since their pro¬ 
fanations are greater, and the places more sacred? 
The Jewish merchants who bought and sold in 
the temple, were guilty of two crimes which 


45 


faned the sanctity of the place. 1. They suffer¬ 
ed their minds and thoughts to be occupied about 
other concerns than the adoration of God. 2. 
Their outward behaviour was so very irreverent 
as to excite the indignation of the Son of God. 
O what a severe punishment therefore has he not 
in reserve, for those Christians who shall be con¬ 
victed of the same offences. 

Besides animadverting on the behaviour of 
those who seem designedly to contrive to come 
late to prayers, as if they considered every mo¬ 
ment they were obliged to remain in the church 
an age, and their extreme hurry to depart the 
moment the service is over, the principal fault of 
which the ministers of God have reason to com¬ 
plain, is a want of that reverential awe and devo¬ 
tion which every one ought to have whilst he is 
in the house of God. It is not with words only, 
but with the pious affections of the mind, we are 
there to entertain ourselves, if we desire to be 
acceptable to God, or wish that he should hear 
our prayers; for if we suffer our minds and 
thoughts to be so much occupied with other con¬ 
cerns, as to pay little or no attention to the sacred 
mysteries at which we are present, we may in¬ 
deed be said to draw near to God with our lips' 
but our hearts are far from him, (Isa. xxix.) an 
hypocrisy extremely odious in his sight, which 
he condemned in the Jews, and will more se¬ 
verely punish in Christians. Nor is he less of¬ 
fended when our outward behaviour is not con¬ 
formable to the holiness of the place: we may 
gaze about and divert ourselves at theatres and 
places of public amusement; we may talk on bu¬ 
siness or politics in market places or public as¬ 
semblies: but as churches are places where we 
meet to implore the mercy . of God, it is there¬ 
fore requisite, that we be not only excited to an 
interior humility of hearty but also to an exterior 
reverence of the body, and to such postures as best 
become penitent supplicants. 

This is that true spirit of devotion, which 
3 ^ 


must always accompany a Christian when he goes 
to the house of prayer. His mind should be en¬ 
tirely intent upon the adoration and worship of 
God. To apply ourselves wilfully to other 
thoughts, is but to insult God, and make his house 
a den of thieves, by robbing him of that honour 
and reverence to which he is justly entitled: a 
crime, for which its perpetrators shall be punish¬ 
ed with the utmost severity. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

Great Sovereign of heaven and earth, in whose 
presence the cherubims cover their faces, and the 
powers of heaven tremble, inspire me with awe 
when I appear before thee in thy house of prayer. 
O may I never rob thee of thy due honour, by an 
irreverent or unbecoming behaviour. Let me 
never, by affronting thee in thine own house, pro¬ 
voke thy indignation, or cause thee to stop thine 
ears against my prayers. I acknowledge myself 
infinitely indebted to thy goodness for permitting 
me to appear in thy presence, to present my peti¬ 
tions at the throne of grace. O grant me the spirit 
of unfeigned devotion, that I may address thee 
with reverence and attention. Then shall my 
prayers ascend like incense in thy sight, and the 
lifting up of my hands and heart become an accept¬ 
able sacrifice to thee, O my God and my Saviour. 

How gracious art thou, O sovereign Lord of 
heaven and earth, in permitting so vile a creatiirey 
so undeserving a wretch, to appear in thy pre¬ 
sence. Dust and ashes as I am, I could never pre¬ 
sume to lift up my eyes to thee, if in thy bountiful 
goodness thou didst not command us to approach 
thy holy sanctuary, promising to hear our prayers 
whenever we should pray to thee as we ought. 
I will then enter into thy tabernacle, O Lord, and 
adore thee in thy holy place. I will prostrate 
myself before thee, and adore thee truly present 
on thy sacred altars. With the utmost reverence 
and respect I will strike my breast, and say with 


47 


the humble publican; God be merciful to me a sin¬ 
ner^ that I may return from thy temple justified in 
thy sight, and obtain the grant of my humble peti¬ 
tion, whereby I may be enabled to persevere to 
the end in thy love and service. 


WEDNESDAY 

IN THE FIRST WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, Matt, xii, 38. 

Then some of the Scribes and Pharisees answer¬ 
ed him, saying: Master we would see a sign from 
thee. 39. But he answering, said to them; An 
evil and adulterous generation seeketh for a sign; 
and a sign shall not be given it, but the sign of 
Jonas the prophet. 40. For as Jonas was in the 
whale’s belly three days and three nights: so shall 
the Son of man be in the heart of the earth three 
days and three nights. 41. The men of Nineve 
shall rise in judgment with this generation, and 
shall condemn it; because they did penance at the 
preaching of Jonas. Aud behold a greater than 
Jonas is here. 42. The queen of the south shall 
rise in judgment with this generation, and shall 
condemn it: because she came from the ends of 
the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and be¬ 
hold a greater than Solomon is here. 43. And 
when an unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he 
walketh through dry places seeking rest, and 
findeth none. 44. Then he saith: I will return 
into my house from whence I came out, and com¬ 
ing he findeth it empty, swept and garnished. 45. 
Then he goeth, and taketh with him seven other 
spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter 
in and dwell there: and the last state of that man 
is made worse than the first. So shall it be also 
to this wicked generation. 46. As he was yet 
speaking to the multitude, behold his mother and 
his brethren stood without, seeking to speak to 


48 


him, 47. And one said to him: Behold thy mo¬ 
ther and thy brethren stand without seeking thee. 
48. But he answering him that told him, said: 
Who is my mother, and who is my brethren? 49. 
And stretching forth his hand towards his disciples 
he said: Behold my mother and my brethren. 
50. For whosoever shall do the will of my father, 
that is in heaven: the same is my brother, and 
sister, and mother. 

REFLECTIONS. 

Christ, in this day’s gospel, reproaches the 
Jews for their obstinacy and perverseness in re¬ 
fusing to hearken to his frequent exhortations to 
do penance for their sins, which met with no 
other return from them but a contempt of his per¬ 
son: Is not this the carpenter'^s son? (Matt, xiii,) 
and a derision of his doctrine! he is mad^ and hath 
a devil, why hear ye him? (Johnx.) Wherefore he 
$ells them that the men of Nineve, who had done 
penance at the preaching of Jonas, should rise up 
in judgment against them, since they refused to 
obey the voice of the Son of God, their promis¬ 
ed Messias, whose authority infinitely surpassed 
that of the prophet Jonas. But if the repentance 
and conversion of the Ninevites serve as a great¬ 
er condemnation of the obstinacy and impenitence 
of the Jews, how much more severe must not the 
punishment of those Christians be, who refuse to 
hearken to the voice of Jesus, exhorting them, by 
the mouths of his ministers, to a speedy conver¬ 
sion. Jonas preached to the Ninevites, and grant¬ 
ed them a respite of forty days; they immediate¬ 
ly did penance, God’s anger was appeased, and 
they escaped the destruction wherewith they 
were threatened. Happy the sinners who imitate 
them! Miserable those who do not! Their ir¬ 
retrievable misfortune is generally occasioned by 
a false persuasion, that they shall have not only 
time, but also grace, and a will to repent. But here 
the careless and negligent sinner often finds his 


49 


hopes or rather vain assurances disappointed. 
The abuse he has made of the mercy of God, will 
prove the fatal cause why he cannot find time, or 
should he have time, he may not perhaps have the 
will; or if he has, yet he may not have the grace 
to repent; for as grace is a free gift of God, which 
he may without injustice refuse the sinner; he 
who has been in the habit of neglecting and slight¬ 
ing it when offered, has no reason to expect it 
should be granted to him whenever he pleases; 
nor can he complain of the least hardship or in¬ 
justice, if God should then refuse it. 

God has made many gracious promises of par¬ 
don to sinners to encourage them to repentance; 
but he no where promises them time, which in its 
own nature, is the most uncertain of all things. 
Who can assure himself of life for a day, or even 
for an hour.^ Our blessed Saviour, therefore, ex¬ 
horts us to a speedy as well as a sincere repent¬ 
ance. He bids us watch, and why? because we 
know neither the day nor the hour. {Malt, xxv.) 
However, young, strong, or healthy we may be, 
yet we know not whether to-morrow, this day, or 
even this very hour, may not put a period to our 
lives, and still we defer our repentance for months 
and years. Good God, what temerity! what rash¬ 
ness and folly! 

Nor is it less chimerical to flatter ourselves that 
we can have a will to repent when we please. If 
the will of man be in its own nature weak and 
feeble, the will of a sinner is still more so; but 
that of an habitual sinner is weakness in the ex¬ 
treme. With such a one, I would thus argue: 
you say you will repent and be converted; not at 
present, but at some future time. But will not 
the same obstacles which prevent you now., pre¬ 
vent you then also? If your unruly passions, in¬ 
ordinate desires, and vicious habits are present 
obstacles to your conversion, the longer you con¬ 
tinue in them, the stronger they will grow, and 
you will be less able, as well as less willing, to 
quit them. A passion in its infancy may be easily 


50 


stifled, but when grown up to maturity, it be¬ 
comes ungovernable. A habit lately contracted, 
like a slender cord, may be easily broken; but 
when of many years standing, it becomes strong¬ 
er than an iron chain, beyond our strength to break. 
Be yourself then the judge, O rash and inconsider¬ 
ate sinner! how you shall be able to repent some 
years hence, if you refuse to be converted note. 

You will say, perhaps, that although it be dif¬ 
ficult, yet you may do it by the aid of God’s grace. 
Granted: But although he has promised his grace 
to all men, that none should despair, yet he has 
never engaged himself to grant it to those who 
wilfully abuse and slight it. Although he has made 
many consoling promises to penitent sinners, to 
excite them to a confidence in his mercy, yet he 
has also thundered out as many severe threats and 
terrible menaces against the obstinate, who refuse 
to hearken to him when he invites them to repent¬ 
ance. The most hardened sinner, therefore, 
ought to tremble at the consideration of his ex¬ 
treme rashness and unreasonable folly, in flatter¬ 
ing himself with the hope of obtaining grace 
whenever he pleases. Christ tells the Jews that 
they should seek him, but should not find him; and 
that they should die in their sins, {John vii. 8.) 
That this is not a bare threat, but frequently fol¬ 
lowed by real and terrible effects, we may learn 
from the sad examples of Cain, Pharoah, Antio- 
chus, &c. &c. who sought, but sought in vain, for 
pardon, because they had abused the grace of 
God by their criminal negligence and obstinacy. 
It must be also observed, that the grace of con¬ 
version in habitual sinners is a special and extra¬ 
ordinary favour. A sinner then, who abuses and 
neglects the ordinary graces of God, how can he 
expect to be favoured with extraordinary favors } 
Alas! he cannot. To depend upon them there¬ 
fore, is a rash and unwarrantable presumption. 

These truths, O Christians, deserve our most 
serious consideration, and the use we should make 
of them is, to close immediately with the gracious 


51 


©fFers of Almighty God, and return to him by a 
sincere and speedy conversion. Let us then ac¬ 
ceptor the grace he offers at this holy time, by 
so doing, we shall render ourselves secure, and 
escape that dreadful judgment and condemnation 
which must otherwise fall to our lot. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

Ah, my God! make me sensible of the misfor¬ 
tunes to which I expose myself, by deferring my 
conversion. Deliver me, in thy great mercy, 
from so egregious a rashness. Suffer me no long¬ 
er to abuse thy goodness, nor trifle with my eter¬ 
nal salvation. No Lord, from this moment I am 
resolved to begin; and, O may it be the change 
of the right hand of the most High! I here hum¬ 
ble myself in thy presence, and sincerely acknow¬ 
ledge my past sins, for which I humbly implore 
thy mercy and pardon. I am sorry from the bot¬ 
tom of my heart, for having so often, and so long, 
withstood thy gracious calls. I now sincerely 
promise amendment. From this moment I will 
begin to serve thee with the utmost fidelity, and 
to love thee only, always, and above all other 
things. For who, O my God! can be so worthy 
of love as thee, who art the inexhaustible source 
of happiness, both in this world and the next! 
When I reflect on thy infinite bounty and good¬ 
ness towards me, I am overwhelmed with confu¬ 
sion at the sight of my base ingratitude. Dearest 
Lord! in addition to all thy other favours, grant 
that I may be so truly sensible of thy mercy and 
patience in my regard, as never more to abuse it. 
O may the consideration of thy goodness and 
bounty work such a change in my heart, that from 
this moment I may persevere in thy service, with 
a most pure and ardent love. O may I now begin 
truly to love and serve thee, for alas! what I have 
hitherto done is nothing. 


32 


THURSDAY 

IN THE FIRST WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, Matt. xv. 21. 

And Jesus went from thence, and departed in¬ 
to the coast of Tyre and Sidon. 22. And behold 
a woman of Canaan who came out of those coasts, 
crying out, said to him: Have mercy on me, O 
Lord, thou Son of David: my daughter is grievous¬ 
ly troubled by a devil. 23, But he answered not 
a word. And his disciples came and besought 
him, saying: Send her away, for she crieth after 
us. 24. And he answering, said: I was sent but 
to the sheep that are lost of the house of Israel. 25. 
But she came and worshipped him saying: Lord 
help me. 26. But he answered, and said: It is not 
good to take the bread of the children, and cast it to 
the dogs. 27. And she answered, and said: Yea, 
Lord, for the whelps also eat of the crumbs that 
fall from the table of their masters. 28. Then 
Jesus answering, said to her, O woman, great is 
thy faith: be it done to thee as thou wilt. And 
her daughter was cured from that hour. 

REFLECTIONS. 

From the example of this Canaanite woman, 
who with so much humility and perseverance be¬ 
sought our Saviour to heal her daughter, we may 
learn how to address ourselves to God when we 
stand in need of his assistance. She is a proof 
of what the apostle says, that with God there is no 
exception of persons, (Gal. i.) As she was not 
one of the people of God, but a Canaanite and a 
Pagan; Christ at first seems to reject her, and re¬ 
gards not her cries: for when the apostles inter¬ 
ceded in her behalf, he replied: That he was only 
sent to the Jews, the lost sheep of the house of 
Israel, The pious suppliant not discouiaged at 
this refusal, approaching adored him, and by her 


53 


humility and perseverance merited the great 
eulogy; O iconutn^ is thy faith; together 

with the grant of her request: Be it done unto thee 
as thou desirest: and her daughter was immedi¬ 
ately cured. Ah! how opposite is this stranger’s 
manner of prayer from ours, and how contrary the 
success wherewith it is attended! Slie asks, and 
obtains; we ask, and receive not, because the apos¬ 
tle observes, (James iv.) ice ask amiss. Her re¬ 
quest for the deliverance of her daughter from the 
devil, was a laicful petition, accompanied by a 
strong faith, and a humble eonfidenee. Behold 
here two excellent lessons, whereby we may learn 
how to pray, so as to be heard; first, in all our 
prayers to demand those things which are lawful 
and good; and secondly, to demand them in such 
a manner as to induce God to grant our request. 

First, therefore, we must in all our prayers ask 
for those things which are in themselves good and 
lawful. Such petitions as these God has promis¬ 
ed to hear; the holy scriptures. In liiaiiy instances 
shew their power and efficacy; and if our prayers 
do not meet with thp same success, the reason is, 
because we do not ask as we ought; our inclina¬ 
tions and desires are confined by a narrow view 
of the things of this world, which appear to be 
the object and end of all our wishes. Some ask 
what seems good to themselves, but not so in the 
sight of God; such as riches and honours, which 
generally prove occasions of offending him; and 
if he refuses to grant such requests, it is with the 
merciful intent to preserve us from danger. Per¬ 
haps it may be said by some: “ I ask nothing but 
what is lawful, as this Canaanite woman did, to be 
freed from a violent pain of illness; I am poor, I 
demand some assistance,” These demands though 
good and reasonable in themselves, may not per¬ 
haps be so in your particular case. God sees that 
sickness and poverty will best answer the designs 
of his providence in your regard, and therefore 
he does not grant your request. We have an ad¬ 
mirable model of prayer in that which our blessed 


54 


Saviour has taught us. First let us pray that the 
name of God may be glorified, that we may par¬ 
take of his heavenly kingdom, that his divine 
will may be done; and then we may securely ask 
for our daily bread. If engaged in a suit of law, 
if sick, or in narrow circumstances, let us first 
pray that the will of God may be done in all things; 
and then we may beg for success in our suit, for 
the recovery of our health, and for the relief of 
our necessities. This is what Christ exhorts us 
to, saying: Seek first the kingdom of God, and his 
righteousness, and all other things shall be added 
to you, (Matt, vi.) This is the first lesson on 
prayer, which we learn from the woman of Canaan. 

The second is to address our petitions in such 
a manner as that God may grant them. The poor 
woman requested our blessed Lord to deliver her 
daughter from the power of the devil; she made 
this prayer with profound humility, strong confi¬ 
dence, and patient perseverance, three essential 
qualities of prayer. Humility is absolutely neces¬ 
sary, for God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace 
to the humble, (James iv.) and it is the prayer of 
the humble only that penetrates the clouds, (Eccl. 
XXXV.) if with the Canaanite woman, we humbly 
acknowledge our unworthiness, and with the 
penitent publican, we smite our breasts, and say, 
Lord be merciful to me a sinner, (Luke xviii.) then 
will God hear our prayers, and grant our petition. 

Another condition of prayer is, to pray with 
faith and confidence. We must believe that God 
is willing and able to grant our requests; for if 
we express any diffidence in his power and good¬ 
ness we insult him, and prevent him from hearing 
us. Yet so little is the faith and confidence we 
place in God, that he is frequently the last to whom 
we have recourse in any necessity; and then only 
when every other aid has failed, whereas, we 
should apply to him in the first place. Had the 
woman in the gospel shewn any diffidence in our 
blessed Saviour, he would neither have commend¬ 
ed her faith, nor granted her request. To be 


55 


heard tlien, as she was, we must pray with confi¬ 
dence^ lest we should prevent the divine bounty 
from granting our requests, 

The third condition is perseverance^ if we do 
not immediately perceive the effects of our prayers 
in obtaining what we ask, we must not therefore 
desist from praying. God seems to deny at first 
what he will grant us at last, if we persevere in 
prayer. Hence our blessed Saviour tells us, it 
behooves us always to pray^ and not to faint, (huke 
xviii.) Thus this poor woman, though at first re¬ 
jected by our Saviour, and even when the apostles 
had interceded in her behalf, was not discouraged 
but continuing her cries, obtained her desires, 
and was dismissed with. Be it done unto thee as 
thou desirest. In like manner shall we obtain our 
requests, if we persevere in prayer, and present 
our petitions with humble submission to God’s 
holy will; but we must also leave the time when, 
as well as the manner how, to himself, and wait 
with patience Hill it shall please him to grant what 
we desire. If we solicit a person in power for 
his assistance, we -do not take the first refusal, 
we renew our request, and if we obtain a promise 
are content to wait his leisure, and after all, may 
be, and often are, disappointed: and shall we not 
be content to wait God’s time, who we know, 
will never disappoint or deceive us ^ If he delays 
for some time to grant our petition, it is only to 
put our faith and patience to a trial, the more 
amply to reward those virtues. We shall have 
no reason to repent of our expectation: for, if we 
continue to seek, we shall find; and if we continue 
to knock, heaven’s gates will be assuredly open¬ 
ed to us. Let us then conclude these reflections 
with the words of St. Bernard: “ If our prayers 
“ are made with faith, humility, and fervency, 
“ they will certainly ascend up to heaven, nor 
“ can they return from tlience empty or in vaim” 
{Sermon 4. in Quadrag.) 


56 


ASPIRATIONS. 

Adorable Saviour! who dost graciously in¬ 
vite us to ask every thing in thy name, with a 
promise that we shil be heard, teach me to ask 
for what I ought, as I ought. Make me to un¬ 
derstand those things which I ask of thy heavenly 
Father: instruct me how I am to ask them. 
Grant me that faith, humility, and perseverance, 
which may make my prayers acceptable in thy 
sight, that praying as I should upon earth, I may 
praise thee in heaven for eternity. O how great 
is thy goodness, merciful Redeemer of mankind! 
who in condescension to our weakness, hast given 
us a most excellent and perfect form of prayer; 
and for our encouragement hast assured us, that 
when we pray we shall be heard. Hear then, 
my prayers, O Lord, and grant that I may be sen¬ 
sible of thy goodness towards me, and my obliga¬ 
tions to thGe. Grant that being convirxced of 
own weakness, I may place my entire dependence 
on thee. To thee may I have recourse in all my 
necessities, and from thy bounty hope to obtain a 
supply of all my wants, to the honour and glory 
of thy holy name. 

I perceive, O dearest Lord, the great neces¬ 
sity I have of thy grace, as without its aid I can 
do nothing. I therefore humbly beseech thee to 
help my weakness, and strengthen my good pur¬ 
poses and resolutions of loving and serving thee. 
Behold me, dear Saviour of my soul! full of mi¬ 
sery, weakness, and corruption, I have recourse 
to thee alone, for thou only canst help and assist 
me. To thee do 1 humbly lay open all my mise¬ 
ries, not to inform thee, to whom the secrets of 
all hearts are open, and from whom nothing is 
hid; but to excite thy compassion, and obtain 
from thy love and bounty a supply of my wants. 
O inexhaustible treasure of goodness and love, 
open the rich store-house of thy mercy and com¬ 
municate thy graces to my soul. Fill my empty 


57 


neart with an ardent love of thee. Unite me so 
intimately to thyself, that nothing being able to 
separate me from thee, I may for ever live in 
thee, and thou in me. 


FRIDAY 

IN THE FIRST SUNDAY IN LENT. 

The Gospel, John v. 1. 

After this, was a festival day of the Jews, and 
Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 2. Now there is at 
Jerusalem a pond called Probatica, which in He¬ 
brew is named Bethsaida, having five porches. 3. 
In these lay a great multitude of sick, of blind, of 
lame, of withered, w aiting for the moving of the 
water. 4. And an angel of the Lord went down 
at certain times into the pond; and the w^ater w^as 
moved. And he that went down first into the 
pond after the motion of the water, was made 
w hole of whatvsoever infirmity he lay under. 5. 
And there was a certain man there that had been 
eight and thirty years under his infirmity. 6. 
Him, when Jesus had seen lying, and knew that 
he had been now a long time, he saith to him; 
Wilt thou be made w^hole? 7. The infirm man 
answered him; Sir, I have no man, when the w^a- 
ter is troubled, to put me into the pond. For 
^vhilst I am coming, another goeth down before 
me 8. Jesus saith to him: Arise, take up thy 
bed, and walk. 9. And immediately the man 
was made whole: and he took up his bed and 
walked. And it was the sabbath that day. 10. 
The Jews therefore said to him that w'as cured; 
It is the sabbath, it is not lawful for thee to take 
up thy bed. 11. He answered them: He that 
made me whole, he said to me: take up thy bed 
and walk.? 12. They asked him therefore: Who 
is that man that said to thee: Take up thy bed 
and w’alk.? 13. But he that was healed, knew not 


58 


who it was. For Jesus went aside from the 
multitude that was standing in the place. 14. 
Afterwards Jesus findeth him in the temple, and 
saith to him: Behold thou art made whole: sin 
no more, lest some worse thing happen to thee. 
15. The man went his way and told the Jews 
that it was Jesus that had made him whole. IG. 
Therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, be¬ 
cause he did these things on the sabbath. 

REFLECTIONS. 

The gospel of this day affords us three salutary 
considerations. Firsts the sad state of sinners, 
represented by the poor man who had laboured 
eight and thirty years under a distemper. Se~ 
condly, the great mercy of God, exemplified in 
his cure. Thirdly^ A profitable caution for sin¬ 
ners reconciled to God, in those words of Christ 
to the sick man: Behold thou art cured: sin no 
more^ lest something icorse hefal thee. The condi¬ 
tion of this poor object was doubtless deplorable. 
He had laboured thirty-eight years under an in¬ 
firmity which rendered him unable to help him¬ 
self, not having any one to assist him to get first 
into the w^ater, to be cured at the pool of Beth- 
saida: a lively figure of the deplorable condition 
of those who live in an habitual state of sin, which 
depriving them of the grace of God, renders 
them incapable to help themselves. O sad effects 
of sin which reduces a sinner to such spiritual 
weakness, that his will is averse to do good, and 
to every thing that relates to God and his service. 
His understanding is blind and ignorant, incapa¬ 
ble of seeing or comprehending the danger of his 
situation. Whilst he remains in this sad state, he 
is like the man in the gospel, unable to help him¬ 
self, and waits in vain for the assistance of others. 
The things of this world, to which sinners are so 
violently attached, will neither comfort nor heal 
their spiritual maladies: it is only from the grace 
of God, which he is always willing to bestow up- 


59 


on those who sincerely desire it, that they can ex¬ 
pect a cure. And though the state of an liabitual sin¬ 
ner be truly lamentable, he must not despair. God 
has mercy in store for the greatest of sinners. He 
addresses them in the words of Christ to the sick 
man: tVill you be made whole? And provided 
they be sincerely willing, he will further say: 
Jlrise, take up thy bed^ and walk. 

The consideration of the infinite mercy of God 
towards sinners ought to be their greatest com¬ 
fort and consolation. They may at all times find 
in him, a powerful physician, w^ho is both able 
and willing to cure them: and for the encourage¬ 
ment of even the greatest offenders he thus ad¬ 
dresses them by the mouth of his prophets: Jls I 
live., I desire not the death of a sinner., but rather 
that he be converted and live., (Ezek. xxxiii.) Turn 
io me, O House of Israel, and though your sins 
be as scarlet, they shall become white as snoio ; and 
though they are red as vermillion, they shall be 
made white as wool, (Isaias i.) No assurance can 
be more certain, than that God will shew mercy 
to all who are truly penitent, and no time can be 
more proper for their conversion, than the pre¬ 
sent penitential season, w^herein we are called up¬ 
on by the Church, to seek a reconciliation with 
him, by fasting, prayer, and the amendment of 
our lives. To this he exhorts us by his prophet: 
Convert yourselves from your evil ways ; and why 
will you die, O House of Israel (Ezek. xxxiii.) 
Ah! what can be more tender or endearing.!^ Must 
not that sinner then be obstinately bent on his own 
destruction who refuses to answer so gracious a 
call.^ Not so, the sick man in the gospel, when 
our Saviour asked him if he desired to be made 
wdiole, he answered in the affirmative, but said he 
had no one to help him. Christ immediately 
cured him, and bid him take up his bed and w^alk. 
Would sinners imitate this paralytic, let them be 
sensible of their melancholy situation, shew a 
sincere willingness to be delivered from it, and 
do as their spiritual physician orders them, they 


60 


would Ihen find a certain cure, and be restored to 
their health again, by recovering the grace and 
favour of God; but they must also never forget the 
advice our blessed Lord gave to this man, when 
he found him afterwards in the temple: Sin no 
more^ lest a worse thing befal thee. 

What ingratitude can be more base than for a 
person, who after having forfeited his life and 
estate for treason against his prince, and having 
the one spared: and the other restored to him by 
royal bounty, to fall again into his former treason 
and rebellion, does not such a traitor deserve to 
feel the utmost rigour of the law? Hence we 
may learn what an heinous otFence it is, and how 
severe a punishment it deserves, wilfully to re¬ 
lapse into those sins of which we have obtained 
pardon from God. As nothing is more unworthy 
his goodness, so nothing more provokes his jus¬ 
tice. By Si wilful relapse, the sinner violates the 
sanctity of the sacrament of penance, wherein he 
solemnly promised never more to offend God, to 
whose mercy he is so much indebted, for having 
obtained the remission of his sins; what therefore 
can be a greater crime than again to rise up in spi¬ 
ritual rebellion against him; do not such sinners de¬ 
serve the severest punishment? ought he not smart 
under the rod of God’s justice, who thus ungrate¬ 
fully abuses his mercy. For, as St. Chrysostom 
observes, “ He is unworthy of mercy, who after 
“ pardon, sins again; he is unworthy of health, 
who being cured makes himself sick again; and 
neither does he deserve to be cleansed, who 
after grace defiles himself again.” (Horn 2. de 
Lapsu Primi Ho,n.) As there is no evil then 
against which we ought to be more on our guard 
than that of relapsing into sin after having 
obtained pardon, so there is nothing of which we 
ought to be more careful than to preserve our¬ 
selves in the grace and favour of God, to which 
we are restored by repentance. Let us then ever 
remember the admonition of our Saviour: Sin no 
more, lest something worse befal thee. 


61 


ASPIRATIONS. 

To thee I have recourse, O Jesus, the true and 
only physician of my soul. I am sick, dear Lord, 
and have long been troubled with many infirmi¬ 
ties: I labour under many evil habits, and have 
no one to help me. Look upon me with an eye 
of pity, and say to me as thou didst to the sick 
man: Rise, take up thy bed and walk. O breathe 
those comfortable words to my soul: Be of good 
courage^ thy sms are forgiven thee. Then will I 
rise, and walk in the paths of thy commandments, 
and with all possible gratitude and acknowledge¬ 
ment, praise thy holy name. But when thou hast 
thus made me whole, graciously ^preserve and 
keep me in health; never permit me to relapse 
into sin, nor frustrate thy goodness by my in¬ 
gratitude. Alas! my dear Lord, how ought I be 
covered with shame and confusion, when I con¬ 
sider how often thou hast mercifully pardoned 
my sins, and yet, alas! I have relapsed into those 
very sins again.^ O God, my soul is troubled and 
overwhelmed with fear and apprehension; but as 
thou art an inexhaustible source of mercy and 
goodness, 1 have recourse to thee again. Par¬ 
don me once more, O merciful Saviour; and I 
hope, by thy grace, to be more constant and 
faithful to thee hereafter. This is what I ear¬ 
nestly desire, and will seriously labour to obtain. 
Thou hast thyself inspired me with this desire. 
Perfect then, dear Lord, what thou hast begun in 
me. O thou health of my soul! thou sovereign 
remedy of all my evils! To whom should I have 
recourse but thee, or frdm wdiom should I seek 
for help but from thee.^ ’Tis thou alone that canst 
restore the sick to health, and raise the dead to 
life. O may I experience this thy power and 
goodness Speak the word, O Lord, and my 
soul shall be healed: and O may thy bounty pre- 
ierve that health to which thou hast restored me, 
4 


62 

tliat I may praise and glorify tby name for ever 
and ever. 


SATURDAY 

IN THE FIRST WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, Matt. xvii. 1. 

And after six days Jesus taketh with him Peter 
and James, and John his brother, and bringeth 
them up into a high mountain apart: 2. And he 
was transfigured before them. And his face did 
shine as the sun: and his garment became white 
as snow, 3. And behold there appeared to them 
Moses and Elias talking with him. 4. Then 
Peter answering, said to Jesus: Lord it is good 
for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here 
three tabernacles, one for thee, and one for Moses, 
and one for Elias. 5. And he was yet speaking, 
behold a bright cloud overshadowed them. And 
lo a voice out of the cloud, saying: This is my 
beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, hear 
ye him. 6. And the disciples hearing, fell upon 
their face, and were very much afraid. 7. And 
Jesus came and touched them: and said to them: 
Arise, and be not afraid. 8. And when they lift¬ 
ed up their eyes, they saw no man, but only Jesus. 
9. And as they came down from the mountain, 
Jesus charged them, saying: Tell the vision to 
no man, till the Son of man be risen from the dead. 

REFLECTIONS. 

Our blessed Lord having entertained his dis¬ 
ciples with a discourse concerning his passion, 
and the cruel sufferings he was to meet with from 
the Jews, St. Peter in a transport of love to his 
divine Master, said to him: Lord, far he it from 
thee: this shall not happen to thee, (Matt, xvi.) 
But the Son of God, instead of approving, gave 


63 


the prince of the apostles a severe reprimand, and 
from thence took occasion to tell his apostles, that 
he alone was not to suffer, but that they, and 
every one who desired to be his disciples, must 
also after his example, suffer and carry their cross; 
and that in recompense of their sufferings, they 
should partake of his glory when he came to 
judge the w orld, and render to every one accord¬ 
ing to his w^orks. But as the glory which he pro¬ 
mised w^as a future happiness unknown to them, 
he would by way of encouragement give them a 
glimpse of it, that they might not doubt the truth 
of what he said to them; hence he took SS. Peter, 
James, and John, up to a high mountain, and w^as 
there transfigured before them. In the mystery 
of Christ’s transfiguration, we may consider what 
St. Luke says, (cliap. ix.) that Moses and Elias 
talked wdth our Saviour about his passion, and 
what he was to suffer at Jerusalem. By which 
we are to understand, that it is by suffering with 
Christ wc must hope to arrive at his glory. As 
the apostle St. Paul says; Jf we suffer with him, 
we shall be glorified with him. (Rom. viii.) Calvary 
is the road to Thabor; the glories of Mount Tha- 
bor will recompense the sufterings of Mount Cal¬ 
vary. 

Christ, speaking of himself, says, that it behov- 
ed him to suffer, and so to enter into his glory, 
{Luke, xxiv.) If it behoved him, who is our head, 
how much more us, w^ho are his members. We 
all desire to share in the glory of heaven, but it 
is an illusion to expect to arrive thereat, and not 
w^alk in the way that leads to it. The cross is 
the only way to heaven, How^ can w^e then flat¬ 
ter ourselves with the hope of getting thither, if 
w^e turn out of our w ay.^ As sons of Qod, and 
the brethren of Jesus Christ we may hope for 
heaven; but then we must be content to suffer 
with Jesus, t^s members of the Catholic Church, 
we may hope for heaven; but the cross and suf¬ 
ferings are the portion here, of which w^e must be 
partakers. If as penitents we hope to gain hea- 


64 


yen, we must suffer here, to make some atone¬ 
ment for our sins. If, in a word, we desire to share 
in the glories of Thabor^ we must first bear a part 
in the sufferings of Calvary. A prospect of the 
glories of the former, will animate and enable us 
to support with joy and patience the sufferings of 
the latter. 

There are no punishments in this world, however 
severe, that will not appear light and easy to that 
Christian, who seriously reflects on the eternal 
rewards that awaits them in the next. This made 
St. Paul exclaim that the sufferings of this world 
are not worthy to be compared ivith the future glory 
which shall be revealed in us^ (Rom. viii.) Ah, 
what proportion can there be, between the short 
misery of a few years, and the never-ending glo¬ 
ries of heaven } Let us take the balance of eter¬ 
nity into our hands, and put into one scale all the 
wretchedness of this life, pain,—grief,—shame, 
poverty—disgrace and persecution, and into the 
other, eternity,—heaven,—God himself; and with 
astonishment behold the disproportion! Holy 
Job, in all his afflictions made use of this consider¬ 
ation, and from his dunghill—in the midst of his 
pains cried out with joy; I shall see my God ; my 
eyes shall behold him; this hope is laid up in my 
bosom., (Job. xv.) Thus a good Christian who 
beholds with the eye of faith, all the glories of 
heaven, will say, though I have lost my temporal 
goods, I shall one day behold and possess my 
God. Though I am now calumniated, persecuted, 
and in disgrace, and my body sorely afflicted by 
pain and sickness, yet this same body shall rise 
again to enjoy God, and partake of the glory of 
heaven. This consideration will comfort us in 
all our troubles, and prove an excellent catholicon 
for all distempers. When once our hearts be¬ 
come enamoured with a desire of the other world, 
and we place before our eyes its incomparable 
glories and happiness, we shall think those suf¬ 
ferings which are the necessary means to obtain 
it, as mere trifles. We shall rather say with St. 


(55 


Peter, Lord! it is good for us to he /iere,anci think 
ourselves happy in bein^ in the safe high road to 
our heavenly country, where all our tears will he 
wiped away; our sorrow turned into joy, and the 
short and momentary troubles of this world be 
terminated in an eternal possession of never end¬ 
ing bliss. 


ASPIRATIONS. 

Adorable Jesus! O suffering Redeemer of 
mankind! I earnestly desire to partake of thy glo¬ 
ries, and am also content to share in thy suf¬ 
ferings. I will carry my cross after thee; I will 
be crucified to tlie world, and the wotld shall be 
crucified to me. I desire, dear Jesus to ascend 
with thee up to mount Thabor, but I will fir^t fol¬ 
low thee to mount Calvary. There will I die to 
myself and the world; there will I offer myself a 
sacrifice on the altar of the cross; since it was* 
love dear Lord, that nailed thee to that sacred 
wood, so it is love shall fix me on it also. O that 
I could there breathe out my soul in the purest 
affections of love and gratitude towards thee, who 
has loved me to such an excess as to die upon the 
cross for my sake! Teach me to know and un¬ 
derstand this important truth, that to be happy 
with thee, I must suffer with thee: and that it is 
only by the way of the cross, that I can obtain a 
crown of glory. 

Shall I then murmur and repine at any cross or 
affliction thou shalt please to send me.-* No, my 
dearest Jesus! I will willingly take up my cross 
and follow thee. Since the cross is thy royal 
standard, around which thou dost gather all thy 
faithful soldiers: and how can I pretend to be in¬ 
corporated among them, if I fly from it? The 
cross, then, shall henceforth be my delight. I 
will not only be content, but rejoice to suffer for, 
and with thee here, that I may be happy with thee 
hereafter. All my pains shall be sanctified by 
thy holy cross, and all my afflictions will be ren- 


06 


dorcd sweet aiid easy by reflecting on thy suf¬ 
ferings. O my divine and suffering Lord and 
Master, as I am thy disciple and servant I desire 
not to be treated better than thou wast: for it 
sliall be my glory as well as my happiness, to 
suffer with thee. 

— 

SECOND SUNDAY IN LENT. 

ON THE TRANSFIGURATION OF OUR LORD. 

See Yesterday’s Gospel, Matt. xvii. p. 62. 

REFLECTIONS. 

As the design of the holy Jesus, in carrying 
SS. Peter, James and John, up to a high moun¬ 
tain to behold the glory of his transffguration, 
was to encourage them the better to discharge all 
those arduous labours for which they were de¬ 
signed, as well as to bear with patience, those 
sufferings their divine Master had told them they 
should undergo, in hopes of obtaining thereby 
the glory of heaven, of which, what they be¬ 
held upon Mount Thabor, was but a faint repre¬ 
sentation ! so the same is the design of his church 
in selecting this portion of the holy scriptures for 
her gospels of yesterday and to-day; that being 
led thereby to a consideration of the infinite hap¬ 
piness and glory of the other world, we might 
with more ease and courage pursue our journey 
through the arduous and difficult paths of mortifi¬ 
cation, self-denial, fasting, prayer, and works of 
penance, which will infallibly conduct us to that 
glorious and happy kingdom, the sight whereof 
will make us exclaim with St. Peter, Lord, it is 
good for us to be here. That the apostle, in rap¬ 
tures of joy and admiration, should desire to re¬ 
main on Mount Thabor, and express his reluc¬ 
tance to quit the glories he there beheld, is by no 
means surprising. But that among Christians^ 


67 


who profess tliemselves to be the disciples of 
Jesus Christ, there should be found so many, 
who express a similar desire with regard to dif¬ 
ferent otyects, is truly so. The world alas! has 
nothing in it desirable; nothing permanent; no¬ 
thing that can render us happy; and yet many 
are so blinded with an affection for its enjoy¬ 
ments, and so strongly attached to its pleasures, 
riches, and honours, that forgetful of their hea¬ 
venly country, they cry out: Bonum est nos hie 
esse: It is good for us to be here. O fatal degen¬ 
eracy of the Christian character! O deplorable 
blindness of those, who by an inordinate affection 
for the vain and transient pleasures of this world 
incur the extreme hazard of losing the inexpres¬ 
sible, solid, and permanent glory and happiness 
of the next. 

To correct so egregious an error, the church, 
as has been observed, this day proposes the hap¬ 
piness of heaven to our consideration, to the end 
that we might make a wise and prudent choice, 
by not preferring momentary satisfactions, to so¬ 
lid and everlasting comforts. Let us then enter 
into her sentiments, and make the world the sub¬ 
ject of our serious reflections, and on examina¬ 
tion we shall discover it to be that which de¬ 
ceives and involves its votaries in ruin. This 
will appear, when we consider that to render 
man truly happy, three things are necessary: 
First., Something that is capable of satisfying all 
his desires: for to enjoy one thing which we de¬ 
sire, and to want another which we ardently wish 
for, is but a partial happiness, or rather a misery; 
as the pain felt by the want of the one, deprives 
us of the pleasure of enjoying the other. Second¬ 
ly, We must not only discover what will satisfy 
all our desires, but we must also possess it. 
Thirdly, This possession must not be of a short 
and uncertain, but of a long and permanent dura¬ 
tion, without the fear of losing it. But this is not to 
be found in the world, which has nothing capable 
of satisfying the desires of a heart created for 


68 


God, and which can never be contented but in 
him. Nor can we be said truly to possess any 
thing we esteem in this world, since the enjoy¬ 
ment we have of it is to last for so short a time. 

For the truth of the first assertion^ we appeal 
to worldlings themselves, even those who enjoy 
the largest share of honours, riches, and plea¬ 
sures; are they satisfied.^ No: something is still 
wanting: they would rise to a higher dignit}", 
possess more riches, and enjoy some new plea¬ 
sure. This is an evident proof that they only 
enjoy the shadow instead of the substance If 
any one then can be styled happy in the posses¬ 
sion of the things of this world, it is he who is 
content with a competency suitable to his station; 
and yet the trouble to procure and maintain it is 
often so great, as to render such a one far from 
being perfectly happy. 

Secondly^ No one can, strictly speaking, be 
said to possess any thing in this world. Our 
thoughts, it is true, may be occupied about them, 
our hearts and inclinations may bend towards 
them; but alas! this is not to possess them, as 
we may have them in our power, and yet not en¬ 
joy them. A covetous man does not possess his 
riches, but his riches are rather in possession of 
him. The same may be said of pleasure or any 
other worldly enjoyment. And though we should 
enjoy them, yet the fruition of them is of so un¬ 
certain a duration, as to be accounted rather an 
imaginary than a real possession; a dream, a va¬ 
pour, an illusion; for we cannot enjoy them long, 
and we are certain that sooner or later we must 
quit them. Can we then, without extreme folly, 
fix our affections on the false pleasures and fading 
possessions of this Avorld, which it may be said 
we can neither possess nor enjoy, since they pass 
and repass, and are so subject every moment to 
change. 

This being the real state of the world, and of 
the false happiness it affords, have ^ve any reason 
to say. It is good for us to be here: No, cer- 


69 


tainly. It is only in heaven,—in the possession 
and enjoyment of God himself, that we can be 
truly happy. It is good for us to be where all 
our desires will be abundantly satisfied. In hea¬ 
ven we shall desire nothing which we shall not 
have, nor seek any thing which we shall not 
find. There will be joy without sorrow, plenty 
without want, health without sickness: ho scorch¬ 
ing heat, no piercing cold, no poverty, no dis¬ 
grace, no want of friends; no crosses or disap¬ 
pointments, but a continual flow of everlasting 
pleasures and delights. There we shall see God 
face to facCj (1 Cor. xiii.) There we shall behold 
him as heis^ (1 John iii.) And in the possession 
of him we shall enjoy all things. In a word, we 
shall enjoy what eye hath not seen, ear hath 
not heard, nor the heart of man can compre¬ 
hend, not for a short time, but for ever. We 
shall truly possess them, as we can never lose the 
possession of them. Our enjoyment shall last for 
eternity,—as long as God is God. After ten thou¬ 
sand millions of ages, they will be still new, still 
fresh, and no nearer their end than at the beginning, 
for there can be no period to an endless eternity. 
Ah! this is happiness indeed; yet this happiness 
is offered to every one, and every one may obtain 
it. If in acquiring it, we suffer some troubles 
and afflictions here, shall we not be more than 
abundantly recompensed hereafter.'* Is it not the 
height of practical folly^ to run the hazard of 
losing heaven for aiiy thmg that can be obtained 
on earth? And do not such rash fools deserve to 
smart under the loss, and experience the sad ef¬ 
fects of so mad a choice! O let us then remem¬ 
ber the end for which we were created, for which 
we were redeemed by the adorable blood of 
Jesus Christ. Call to mind^ O Christian^ your 
dignity^ cries out Tertullian, remember you are a 
candidate for eternity. Think then, only of God, 
desire nothing but him; let all your actions be 
directed to him; seek him only upon earth, if you 
desire to reign eternally with him in heaven, 

4 * 


70 


ASPIRATIONS. 

How amiahle are thy tabernacles^ O Lord of 
Hosts! My soul faints mth desire after the house 
of Gody (Ps. Ixxxiii.) O heaven! O celestial 
paradise I to thee do I lift up my eyes, and with 
a longing heart, and stretched out arms, languish 
for the possession of thy glories. O God of infi¬ 
nite goodness, who hast promised heaven, with 
all its glories, to such as love and serve thee, how 
can I sufficiently admire thy excessive bounty, 
thus to reward our trifling services? Shall I not 
then love thee? Shall I not serve thee? Shall 
I not obey thee? Yes, my God, I will love thee, 
honour, and obey thee; for thou art the best of 
masters, and thy rewards, like thyself, are infi¬ 
nite and incomprehensible. Thou hast created 
me for the enjoyment of heaven and eternal hap¬ 
piness. O bountiful Author of my existence, 
shall I neglect all the glories of thy happy 
kingdom, to busy myself about the trifles of this 
world, and foolishly seek for happiness where it 
cannot be found? Ah no; I will rather despise 
the world with all its short lived pleasures; my 
whole care and labour shall be directed towards 
heaven. There will I fix all my thoughts: there 
shall all my endeavours terminate. Adieu, vain 
world! I bid you an eternal farewell; all that I 
wish or desire is, to attain the possession of my 
God, and be happy with him forever. 

Jls the heart panteth after the water brooks^ so 
panteth my soul after thee^ O Lordj (Psalm xii.) 
O when shall I come and appear before the pre¬ 
sence of my God, (Psalm liv.) Who will give 
me the wings of a dove, that I may flee away 
from the troubles of this miserable world, and 
rest, dear Lord, with thee? When shall my 
happy soul possess thee, sweet Jesus, the only 
object of my wishes and desires? When shall I 
arrive at thy charming place of abode, where 1 
shall for ever enjoy thee, without the least fear 


71 


of losing thee? Ah, my God and my All! release 
my soul out of prison, the sad prison of this mise¬ 
rable body, where I remain so long separated 
from thee: where, alas! I so often ofibnd thee; 
and then shall I praise and glorify thy holy name! 
For whom have I in heaven but thee; and what is 
thereupon earth that I desire but thee'^ (Psal. Ixxii.) 


MONDAY 

IN THE SECOND WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, John viii. 21. 

Then Jesus said to them again: I go my way, 
and you shall seek me, and you shall die in your 
sin. Whither I go you cannot come. 22. The 
Jews therefore said: Will he kill himself, be¬ 
cause he said: Whither I go, you cannot come.^ 
23. And he said to them; You are from beneath. 
I am from above. You are of this world. I am not 
of this world. 24. Therefore I said to you, that you 
should die in your sins. For if you believe not that 
I am he, you shall die in your sin. 25. They said 
therefore to him: Who art thou? Jesus said to 
them: The beginning, who also speak to you. 26. 
I have many things to speak, and to judge of you. 
But he that sent me is true: and the things I have 
heard of him, the same I speak in the world. 27. 
Now they did not know that he had said God was 
his father. 28. Jesus therefore said to them: 
When you shall have lifted up the Son of Man, 
then shall you know that I am he, and that I do 
nothing of myself, but as the Father hath taught 
me, I speak these things. 29. And he that sent 
me is with me, and he hath not left me alone: for 
I do always the things that please him. 


7 ^ 


REFLECTIONS. 

The awful threat which the Saviour of the 
world here pronounces against the Jews, is not 
less terrible to many Christians, whom it equally 
concerns. Not to seek after God, is a great mis¬ 
fortune; but to seek after him, and not to find 
him, is infinitely greater. You shall seek ?ne, says 
he, and you shall die in your sins. A plain indi¬ 
cation of the lamentable condition of an obstinate 
sinner, who at the hour of death, seeks God, but 
cannot find him. Let us examine into the cause 
why a sinner does not find God, whom he then 
seeks. It will be a salutary enquiry, as it may 
excite us to adopt the proper means to prevent 
our being involved in the same terrible calamity, 

The obstinate sinner has all his life-time resist¬ 
ed the repeated invitations and inspirations of 
God; he has been deaf to the frequent solicitations 
of his ministers, and refused to repent; but when 
his last sickness tells him he is near his end, with 
what horror and confusion does he not then look 
• back upon his past sinful life, when the sight of 
the many and enormous crimes of which he has 
been guilty, flings him almost into despair.^ He 
has so long abused the grace of God, that he now 
finds little reason to hope in his mercy. He is 
now sensible of all the disorders of his past life, 
and makes just reflections on things; but alas! they 
come too late. What grief and vexation does he 
not then feel for not doing what he might have 
easily done before.^ How much does he regret 
and condemn his procrastinating folly In this 
extreme distress all that he ever heard concern¬ 
ing death, judgment, heaven and hell, come fresh 
into his mind, to afflict and torment him. In this 
deplorable state, a priest is sent for to comfort 
him; but, alas! of what comfort can the sight of a 
priest be to one, who has all his life slighted the 
sacred order, and contemned their pious admoni¬ 
tions, nay made a jest of the serious truths of re- 


73 


ligion? Can the sight of a crucifix, or the passion 
of Christ afford any consolation to one, who never 
lived like a disciple of the crucified Jesus? Ah! 
it were well if the dying sinner could make a 
right use of the few moments he has left; hut, 
alas! his fright and confusion, together with the 
regret he has to quit this world and its enjoyments 
prevent him from making a proper use of them. 
At length, the sinner quits this life in a manner 
truly unhappy, because by death he enters upon 
a miserable eternity; for although he seeks God^ 
yet he does not Jind him^ and thus miserably dies 
in his shis. 

This terrible calamity is entirely owing to the 
sinner himself, because he would not seek God 
when he might be found, nor hearken to him 
when he was called to repentance and amendment 
of life. God has frequently invited him by the 
ministers of his word, often assisted him by the 
secret inspirations of his grace, and afforded him 
time and opportunity; but, alas! he would neither 
embrace the one, nor hearken to the other. He 
wilfully persisted in the ways of sin, and would 
not deny himself unlawful pleasures; he gave him¬ 
self up to the world, and its criminal customs; he 
paid no regard to the self-denying principles of 
the gospel: and thus having, under the name of a 
Christian, lived like a heathen, he is deprived of 
all comfort in death; for though he then seemingly 
seeks after God, how can it be expected he should 
find him, since God himself has declared that he 
will not be mocked? Those, then, who refuse to 
hearken to his voice when he calls upon them, 
will in vain cry out, when they knock and say: 
Lord, Lord, open to us: for to such he will an¬ 
swer, / know you not , depart from me, you work¬ 
ers of iniquity^ (Matt, xxiv.) O sad conclusion 
of a worldly and sinful life! To avoid so dread¬ 
ful a catastrophe, let us now, whilst we enjoy 
health and life—now, whilst we have time and 
opportunity, serve God, keep his commandments, 
and make his gospel the rule of our conduct. 


74 


This will comfort us upon our death-bed, and 
help us to depart out of this world with joy and 
satisfaction. Then shall we find God; when we 
call upon him, then will he answer; Well done, 
good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of the 
Lord, (Matt, xx.) 


ASPIRATIONS. 

O my God! is there any thing in this world 
for the purchase of which I can be content to 
suffer so much horror and confusion at my last 
hour.? No, certainly. Shall I then be so mad as 
not to seek thee now, whilst thou mayest be 
found.? Shall I defer my search after thee till my 
last moments, and thus run the hazard of not find¬ 
ing thee, and of dying in my sins.? O dearest 
Lord, suffer me not to be guilty of so egregious 
an error, nor to fall into so sad a calamity. Let 
me not die the death of a sinner, but receive me 
into thy protection at my last hour. Imprint, O 
my God, this serious truth deep into my breast, 
that to die happily, I must love and serve thee 
faithfully. O may my soul die the death of the 
just, and may my last end be like unto theirs, 
(Numb, xxiii.) 

Whenever, O Lord, it shall please thee to take 
me from hence, may thy grace enable me to die 
the death of the just. May it be my daily endea¬ 
vour to prepare myself to meet thee at my last 
hour, that I may breathe out my soul in peace, 
and quietly resign it into thy hands. For this I 
am resolved to prepare myself whilst thou afford- 
est me time and opportunity. I will endeavour to 
live the life of the just, that I may truly hope that 
my last end shall be like unto theirs. O comfort¬ 
able thought which takes away all fear of death, 
blunts its sting, and removes all its terrors. W hat 
can we have to fear, O my soul, at the end of a 
well-spent life.? And what may I not hope for 
from thy goodness, O my God.? All that thou 
thyself canst give, with whom I shall then be 
eternally happy. 


75 


TUESDAY 

IN THE SECOND WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospely Matt, xxiii. 1, 

Then Jesus spoke to the multitude and to his dis¬ 
ciples, 2. Saying: The Scribes and the Pharisees 
have sitten on the chair of Moses. 3. All there¬ 
fore whatsoever they shall say to you, observe 
and do: but according to their works do ye not: 
for they say, and do not. 4. For they bind heavy 
and insupportable burdens: and lay them on men’s 
shoulders: but with a finger of their own they will 
not move them. 5. And all their works they do 
for to be seen of men. For they make their phy¬ 
lacteries broad and enlarge their fringes. 6. 
And they love the first places at feasts, and the 
first chairs in the synagogues, 7. And salutations 
in the market-place, and to be called by men. 
Rabbi; 8. But be not you called Rabbi. For 
one is your master, and all you are brethren. 9^ 
And call'none your father upon earth: for one is 
your father, who is in heaven. 10. Neither be 
ye.called masters: for one is your master, Christ. 
11. He that is the greatest among you shall be 
your servant. 12. And whosoever shall exalt 
himself, shall be humbled: and he that shall hum¬ 
ble himself, shall be exalted. 

REFLECTIONS. 

Although the Scribes and Pharisees were guilty 
of pride and hypocrisy, sins which our blessed 
Saviour severely condemns in this day’s gospel, 
nevertheless, to do honour to their character as 
legal interpreters of the Jewish law, he tells his 
disciples and the Jews, that as they sat in the 
chair of Moses, they were therefore obliged to 
hear and follow their instructions, without pre¬ 
tending to justify their non-compliance, because 
they bad not practised themselves what they 


76 


taught to others. Christ does not condemn them 
for interpreting the law in a just, though strict 
sense, but he blames them for not practising what 
they taught; and therefore tells the Jews to ob¬ 
serve and to do all that they should say to them 
according to the law, but not to imitate their prac¬ 
tice, because they said and did not. 

From what our blessed Lord here says of the 
Scribes and Pharisees, Christians may learn their 
duty to their pastors, the ministers of the word 
of God; and pastors may understand what they 
owe to the people, or flock committed to their 
care. The people must look upon the ministers 
of God as his deputies, speaking in his name, and 
by his authority. Sent by a legal mission and or¬ 
dination^ they are the ambassadors of God, of 
whom Christ says: He loho hears you^ hears me : 
and he who despises you, despises me, (Luke x.) 
They are then to be attended to with respect and 
attention; and the instructions they deliver from 
the pulpit, must be complied with, without cri¬ 
ticising upon the life and actions of the preacher, 
or examining whether he practises what he 
teaches: We must suppose that he practises 
what he preaches to others; and if it should ap¬ 
pear that he does not, his omission will be no 
excuse for us, nor is he therefore to be contemn¬ 
ed or despised; it is our duty, however, to pray 
for him, and to beg that God would remove the 
evil from his sanctuary. The life of the preach¬ 
er may be crimnal, but when he delivers the truths 
of the gospel, it is God who speaks by his mouth; 
and not to practise what he teaches, is to reject 
God himself. From hence we may learn the man¬ 
ner in which we ought to hear sermons, viz. with 
that respect which is due to the oracles of God: 
with attention to what is said, and a sincere desire 
to learn and practise our duty, and not, after the 
manner of those who go to satisfy their curiosity, 
or to find matter to exercise a profane wit, in 
criticising on the words of the preacher, or the 
manner of his delivery. Nor like those whom 


77 


nothing can please but a florid discourse, decorat¬ 
ed with all the ornaments of rhetoric, or who are 
disgusted at a plain, simple, and practical exhorta¬ 
tion. Nor, in fine, like those who are content to 
hear of virtue and vice in general, but will not al¬ 
low the preacher to enlarge upon particular 
truths which come home to themselves; who care 
not to hear of those awful and important truths of 
the Christian religion, death, judgment, hell, and 
the eternal punishment of sinners; but say, as 
the Jews did to the prophet Isaias; Loquimmi 
nobis placentia, (Isaias xxx.) Tell ns of agree¬ 
able things: do not terrify us with such dismal 
objects. But, alas! this is no better than deceiv¬ 
ing ourselves, and abusing one of the most excel¬ 
lent means which God has established for our sal¬ 
vation. 

A second instruction from this day’s gospel 
concerns the pastors of the church, who ought 
seriously to consider the importance of the charge 
they have taken upon themselves. The faithful 
are committed to their care, and if they are want¬ 
ing in their duty, the souls of their flock will be 
required at their hands. It is the duty of a pastor 
to nourish and feed his flock with the wholesome 
food of sound doctrine; and w^hen the laity are 
told to practise what their pastor teaches, it is 
pre-supposed that his doctrine is orthodox, and ap¬ 
proved by the church. The prophet complained: 
The little ones have asked for bread, and there was 
no one would give it to them, (Lam. iv.) Wo then 
he to those pastors who neglect to instruct the 
faithful, or feed their flock with the spiritual food 
of the word of God. What St. Paul writes to 
Timothy, equally regards every one who is en¬ 
trusted with the care of souls. Preach the tcord, 
urge in season and out of season, reprove, beseech, 
rebuke in all patience, and doctrine, (2 Tim. iv.) 
The divine word must be delivered with an apos¬ 
tolic freedom, for a preacher who does his duty, 
does not so much regard the inclinations of his 
auditors, as their spiritual necessities. He de- 


78 


livers the serious truths of the gospel without dis-* 
simulation, or concealing from sinners the danger 
of their situation. Preachers are called in scrip¬ 
ture the trumpeters of the Lord: Canitetuhain 
Sion, (Joel ii.) Sound the trumpet in Sion. Cry 
aloud, says God to the prophet; exalt your voice 
as a trumpet, and denounce to my people their sins, 
(Isaias Iviii.) These expressions signify, that 
the voice of the ministers of the divine word must, 
like trumpets, alarm, and make the sinner trem¬ 
ble, and not like softer instruments, soothe him 
into a false and dangerous security. 

But the most essential duty of pastors, is to en¬ 
force what they deliver from the pulpit by their 
own practice. A preacher who tells the people 
their duty with force and energy, and does not 
practise what he teaches, does but little good. 
It is hard to impress any duty as indispensable or 
necessary, when they who recommend it do not 
themselves observe it. It is therefore incumbent 
on all ministers of the divine word to adorn their 
sacred character by a holy and exemplary life, 
This will give additional weight to their words, 
and cause their instructions to be duly regarded 
by the people. 


ASPIRATIO^fS. 

O merciful Jesus! Author of grace and holi¬ 
ness! send down thy holy spirit upon all those 
whom thou hast called to thy sacred ministry. 
Endow them with the gifts of the Holy Ghost, 
that their lives may be exemplary patterns of what 
they teach. Imprint in the hearts of all men a 
due respect for thy holy word, and for the minis¬ 
ters thereof. May thy priests, O Lord, be endu¬ 
ed with righteousness, (Psal. cxxxi) and may thy 
people hearken to them with a reverent attention, 
and diligently practise what they inculcate. Thou 
hast said: The priesfs lips shall preserve know¬ 
ledge, (Malac. vi.) And that it is from them we 
must learn our duty, and not seek from their faults 
to justify our own. 


79 


O the immensity of thy goodness, O my God, 
in aftbrding us so excellent a means of knowing 
our duty to thee, and of being conducted in the 
way to eternal happiness. Blessed for ever be 
the wisdom of thy providence in thus consulting 
our wants. Make me sensible, dear Lord, of 
this inestimable favour, and enable me to make a 
right use of it, by attentively hearkening to thy 
voice, when speaking to me by thy ministers, and 
diligently practising what thou teachest. May 
thy holy word be the inviolable rule of my con¬ 
duct, and may I never swerve from the way of 
thy commandments. May the instructions I hear 
from thy ministers, like seed sown upon good 
ground, bring forth fruit to eternal life. 


WEDNESDAY 

IN THE SECOND WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospelj Matt. xx. 17. 

And Jesus going up to Jerusalem, took the 
twelve disciples apart, and said to them: 18. 
Behold we go up to Jerusalem, and the Son of 
Man shall be betrayed to the chief priests and to 
the scribes, and they shall condemn him to death. 
19. And shall deliver him to the gentiles to be 
mocked, and to be scourged, and to be crucified, 
and the third day he shall rise again. 20. Then 
came to him the mother of the sons of Zebedee 
with her sons, worshipping and desiring some¬ 
thing of him. 21. And he said to her: What 
wilt thou ^ She saith to him: Say that these my two 
sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the 
other on thy left, in thy kingdom. 22. But Jesus 
answered, and said: You know not what you 
ask. Can you drink of the chalice that I shall 
drinkThey say to him: We can. 23. He 
saith to them: Of my chalice indeed you shall 
drink: but to sit on my right or left hand, is not 


80 


mine to give to you, but to them for whom it is 
prepared by my Father. 24. And when the ten 
heard it they were moved with indignation against 
the two brethren. 25. But Jesus called them to 
him, and said: You know that the princes of 
the gentiles lord it over them: and they that are 
the greater, exercise power upon them. 26. It 
shall not be so among you; but whosoever will 
he the greater among you, let him be your minis¬ 
ter: 27. And he that will be first among you, 
shall be your servant. 28. Even as the Son of 
Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minis¬ 
ter and give his life a redemption for many. 

REFLECTIONS. 

The apostles, though they had left all things to 
follow Christ, whom they acknowledged to be the 
promised Messias; yet, like the other Jews, they 
expected he would establish a temporal kingdom, 
wherein St. James and St. John desired to be 
distinguished above the rest; but not presuming 
to express their wishes to Christ themselves, they 
prevailed on their mother to beg of Jesus that 
they might sit, the one on his right, and the other 
on his left hand in his kingdom. Ambition is an 
ill weed that grows apace: and if not plucked up 
in the beginning, it takes deep root, and produces 
the most inordinate desires. This pernicious 
love of preference frequently lays hold of those 
who pretend to follow Christ, and makes them 
in love with honour and preferment, whilst they 
call themselves the disciples of the humble Jesus. 

The effects of this passion may be seen in the 
conduct of these two apostles. In answer to 
their petition, Christ demands whether they could 
drink of the cup of his sufferings: to which they 
immediately replied in the affirmative, without 
considering either their own strength, or the 
meaning of the question put to them by Jesus 
Christ. He therefore told their mother, that she 
knew not what she asked: and said to her sons: 


81 


My chalice indeed ye shall drink^ hut to sit at my 
right or left hand is 7Wt mine to give you^ hut to 
those for \chom it is prepared by my Father. The 
petition of the two disciples raised the indignation 
of the other ten disciples, and from thence Christ 
lakes an occasion to give them and us, an admira¬ 
ble lesson of humility. He reprehended the sons 
of Zebedee for their ambitious desires: and like¬ 
wise reproves the rest of the apostles for their be¬ 
ing angry with them on that account. The meek 
Jesus, the Prince of Peace., [Isaias ix.] allow^s of 
no discord or contention amongst his followers. 
Pride and ambition are the parents of strife and 
contention; and both one and the other are in¬ 
compatible with the character of a disciple of 
Christ. If we w^ould be great in his sight, w'e 
must be little in our own, and imitate his humility. 

Humility then being the proper badge of a 
Christian, we ought to be careful to prefer it to 
all exterior marks of honour and preference. 
Humility is the particular lesson we are to learn 
in the school of Christ, wdio says: Learn of me, 
for I am meek and humble of heart, (Matt, xi.) 
Without this virtue, in vain do we pretend to be 
Christians. It is the foundation of the spiritual 
edifice of all other virtues, which if not deeply 
laid, the superstructure will soon be subverted. 
A proud Christian is a direct contradiction; for 
light and darkness are not more opposite and in¬ 
compatible, than pride and Christianity. Jesus 
Christ in his own divine person has given us a 
most perfect example of humility. Being the 
So 7 i of God, nay, God himself, he vouchsafed to 
become mail —to be born of a poor and humble 
virgin—to lead a poor and contemptible life—to 
be called, in scorn, the carpenter’s son—and, 
finally, to expire under all the shame and igno¬ 
miny of the cross: and after such an example, 
shall a Christian dare to be proud.Ah, no! on 
the contrary, if he has any regard for his sacred 
character, he will endeavour to guard himself 
against pride and ambition, as against his most 


82 


cruel enemies, who would deprive him of his 
birth right. There can be no security but by 
walking in the paths of humility, without aspiring 
to honours and exaltation. If we had a perfect 
knowledge of ourselves, we would not desire to 
be preferred before others; but remain content 
in that station, be it ever so humble, wherein God 
has placed us, till it shall please him to say: 
Friend^ sit tip higher, (Luke xiv.) which, if not 
in this world, will assuredly be our lot in the 
next, where humility will meet with a glorious 
recompense, and procure us a place in the king¬ 
dom of God; since truth itself has declared, that 
he who humbles himself, shall be exalted, (Luke 
xiv.) 


ASPIRATIONS. 

O Saviour of the world! eradicate the noxious 
weeds of pride and ambition from the garden of 
my heart, lest they infect and poison my soul. 
Deliver me O Lord, from these violent passions, 
and suffer them not to prevail over me. Make 
me truly humble and content with the lowest 
place. Let me never repine at seeing others 
preferred before me, or more esteemed than my¬ 
self. Teach me, O Jesus! to know myself, that 
being convinced of my own weakness I may har¬ 
bour no other thoughts than those of humility, 
and thereby render myself pleasing to thee. 
Dearest Lord! I am not only contented, but also 
desirous to drink of thy cup, and partake of thy 
sufferings; for I know the cross is the price of a 
heavenly crown: nor can I ever hope to reign with 
thee, if I do not suffer wilh thee, and for thee. 

When I consider, O dear and suffering Re¬ 
deemer! how much thou hast suffered for my 
sake, how ought I to blush and feel confounded 
at my own wretched weakness? Since I call my¬ 
self thy disciple, ought 1 not to take up my cross 
and follow thee? O my adorable Master! to my 
shame be it said, I dread to hear of sufiering, and 


83 


shrink back at every little cross I meet. Dearest 
Jesus correct this disposition of my heart. Grant 
me a love of the cross, and make me willing to suffer 
with thee. The cross is the badge of thy fol¬ 
lowers, and shall I be ashamed to wear it} No, 
my Saviour, as it is my ambition to be thy disciple, 
1 will glory in all that 1 may suffer with and for 
thee: and mayest thou acknowledge me for one of 
thy followers, that carrying my cross after thee 
in this world, I may be crowned by thee in hea¬ 
ven. 


THURSDAY 

IN THE SECOND WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, Luke xvi. 19. 

There was a certain rich man, who was cloth¬ 
ed in purple and fine linen: and feasted sumptu¬ 
ously every day. 20. And there was a certain 
beggar named Lazarus, who lay at his gate, full 
of sores; 21. Desiring to be filled with the crumbs 
that fell from the rich man’s table! and no one did 
give him: moreover the dogs came and licked his 
sores. 22. And it came to pass that the beggar 
died, and was carried by the angels into Abra¬ 
ham’s bosom. And the rich man also died; and 
he was buried in hell. 23. And lifting up his 
eyes, when he was in torments, he saw Abraham 
afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom: 24. And he 
cried, and said: Father Abraham have mercy on 
me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of 
his finger in water, to cool my tongue, for 1 am 
tormented in this flame. 25. And Abraham said 
to him: Son, remember that thou didst receive 
good things in thy life-time, and likewise Laza¬ 
rus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou 
art tormented. 26. And besides all this, between 
us and you there is fixed a great chaos: so that 
they who would pass from hence to you, cannot. 


84 


uor from thence come hither. 27. And he said: 
Then, father, I beseech thee that thou wouldst 
send him to my father’s house. 28. For I have 
five brethren, that he may testify to them, test they 
also come into this place of torments. 29. And 
Abraham said to him: They have Moses and the 
prophets: let them hear them. 33. But he said: 
No, father Abraham, but if any one shall go to 
them from the dead, they will do penance. 31. 
And he said to him: If they hear riot Moses and 
the prophets, neither will they believe, if one 
should rise again from the dead. 

REFLECTIONS. 

The holy Fathers are divided in their senti¬ 
ments concerning the subject of this day’s gospel. 
Some esteem it a true history, others a parable. 
But whether we consider it as one or the other, 
it equally merits our serious attention; as it gives 
a necessary precaution to the rich, and atiords 
great consolation to the poor. The rich may 
here learn what they may expect, if they make 
an ill use of their riches; and the poor how to 
convert their poverty into an instrument of sal¬ 
vation, and a means of obtaining eternal happiness. 
Let us therefore make a short reflection on each. 

There was a certain rich man who was clothed 
in purple and silk, and fared sumptuously every 
day; and when he died, was buried in hell, from 
whence he lamentably exclaimed, / am tormented 
in these flames. Ah, sad end of all his pomp and 
grandeur! Fatal conclusion of a life spent in 
luxury and pleasure! But what was the cause 
of his damnation? Was he damned for being 
rich? No; since riches in themselves are not 
evil; they contain no intrinsic malice; they are 
the gifts of God, the effects of his bounty, and 
therefore may be of great use towards gaining 
heaven. Though Abraham, David, and many 
other saints and holy men were rich, they never¬ 
theless sanctified themselves in the midst of riches 


85 


and abundance. Was lie damned for being cloth¬ 
ed in purple and silk.^ No; persons of distinction 
are no where forbid to be clad magnificently. 
Hester and Judith wore rich and sumptuous ap¬ 
parel. What then could be the reason why this 
unfortunate rich man should, after his death be 
buried in hell.!^ Many very palpable may be as¬ 
signed, which will also damn those rich men, 
who follow his example. 

The scripture makes no mention of his having 
obtained his riches by fraud or injustice; hut on 
the supposition that he had acquired them by 
those means, we need not seek for any other 
cause of his damnation; for whoever thus ac¬ 
quires riches, will assuredly find he has made 
too dear a purchase, and riches thus pro¬ 
cured will certainly plunge a soul into hell. But 
supposing him to have entered upon a large estate 
by inheritance, or to have acquired a great fortune 
by just and honourable assiduity, we shall at 
length find his damnation to have been caused by an 
improper use of riches, and that this was the cause 
and the only cause of ins eternal misery. Though 
riches in themselves are not evil, yet if we con¬ 
vert them to no other purpose than to serve our 
pride and vanity, to gratify our sensual appetites, 
or expend them in criminal excess, in pomp and 
show, folly and extravagance, they will then 
prove the sad cause of our eternal ruin; and, like 
this rich man, after death we shall find our souls 
buried in hell. But that which seems the princi¬ 
pal cause of his damnation, teas a want of mercy 
and compassion for the poor. Lazarus, who lay 
at his gate full of sores, only desired the crumbs 
which fell from his table, and those he refused to 
give him; more cruel and hard-hearted in his re¬ 
fusal ..than the dogs, who came and licked the 
sores of this poor beggar. Ah! here let the rich 
consider and tremble^ who, feeling no compassion 
for the poor, drive them from their gates, and re¬ 
fuse to give them any relief: and as they share 
5 


86 


with Dives in his crime, they must expect to par¬ 
take of his punishment. That sucli was the case 
of this rich man, is obvious from the answer 
of Abraham: Son, remember that thou didst 
receive good things in thy life-time^ and Lazarus 
evil things; but now he is comfortedj and thou art 
tormented. He was justly denied a drop of water 
to cool the tip of his tongue, who had denied La¬ 
zarus the crumbs which fell from his table. And 
such will be the fate of the uncharitable rich, to 
whom Christ at the last day will say: Go ye curs¬ 
ed into everlasting fire; for I was hungry.^ and ye 
gave me not to eat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me 
not to drink. Inasmuch as you did it not to one 
of the least of these, neither have ye done it to me, 
(Matt. XXV.) Let the rich then learn to make a 
proper use of their riches: and whilst they are 
allowed to maintain their rank, and live according 
to their station in this world, let them remember 
that whatever part of the surplus is spent in pride 
vanity, excess, and criminal diversions, will turn 
to a very bad account; let them, I say, learn to 
be charitable to the poor, and be always ready 
and willing to relieve them in their wants and ne¬ 
cessities. By such an use we convert our riches 
into instruments of piety to fit us for eternal bliss. 
It is thus we may enjoy the good things of this 
world without losing those of the other. 

But whilst the rich behold a terrible and in¬ 
structive example in the person of Dives, the poor 
may find matter of great consolation in that of 
Lazarus. He was not only poor, but full of sores, 
and in such extreme want, as to beg for the crumbs 
that fell from the rich man’s table. Ah! liovv 
deplorable his condition, if considered only with 
regard to this world; but how truly happy with 
respect to the next. He died and was carried by 
angels into Abraham’s bosom. O happy poverty, 
that meets with so glorious a recompense! Let 
this be your comfort, O you who labour un¬ 
der the hardships of want and indigence! Let 
this make you easy, who by the dispensation of 


87 


providence, are obliged to labour and toil to pro¬ 
cure a scanty livelihood; you are the friends 
whom God has chosen to himself, the poor of this 
uorldy rich in grace, (James xxi.) Christ has 
said: Blessed are ye poor, because yours is the king¬ 
dom of God. Blessed are ye that are hungry now, 
because ye shall be filled, (Luke ix.) You are in 
the same state which Christ himself has chosen, 
and which he has sanctified in his own person. 
Like you he was poor; nay, his poverty was so 
great, that he said of himself: The foxes have 
holes, and the birds of the air nests: but the Son 
of J\[an has no where to lay his head, (Luke ix.) 
Poverty then is not such a misfortune as the world 
esteems it. It is a safe and secure state, which 
delivers us from an infinite number of those dan¬ 
gerous occasions of sin, to which riches and abun¬ 
dance expose us. All the hardships of a poor and 
humble state will be abundantly recompensed by 
the glories of heaven. Poverty in this life, and 
Abraham’s bosom in the next, is infinitely prefer¬ 
able to the purple and riches of Dives, followed 
by the eternal torments of hell. 

But then it must be considered, that as it was not 
his riches, but the abuse of them, that caused the 
damnation of Dives; so it was not the poverty 
alone, but the patience of Lazarus that saved him. 
As we may be rich and obtain salvation, so may 
we be poor and incur damnation, if we murmur 
and repine at providence: if we seek to extricate 
ourselves from poverty by unlawful means; if we 
are poor in fact, but rich in desire, and are not 
content with our state; if, working for this world 
we do nothing for the next, and neglect our duty 
to God; in these cases poverty will be of no ad¬ 
vantage to us; it will be our misfortune here, but 
doubly so hereafter. To prevent which, we must 
to our exterior poverty, unite an interior resigna¬ 
tion of spirit, by being really content with our 
lot, and sanctifying the hardships of our state, by 
a patient submission to the will of God; by making 
it our greatest care to become rich in grace and 


88 


good works, and thereby to lay up for ourselves 
lasting treasures in heaven. This is that poverty 
which our blessed Saviour declares blessed ; that 
poverty, in which, if we die, the angels will as¬ 
suredly convey our departed souls into Abraham’s 
bosom. 


ASPIRATIONS. 

Since riches, O my God! are thy gifts, when 
thou bestowest them upon us, give us also grace 
to make a right use of them; and since they are 
dangerous, and may prove the cause of our ruin, 
suffer us not to fix our hearts upon them. O let 
us rather despise them, that we may only search 
after the riches of thy kingdom. Let me not place 
my affections upon the things of this world, or 
neglect my duty to thee; nor for obtaining the 
transitory enjoyments of the earth, hazard the 
loss of the eternal glories of heaven. If tfiou art 
pleased to giv^e me the good things of this world, 
it shall be my endeavour to apply them to thy ho¬ 
nour and glory, and the benefit of those in want. 
If thou wilt that I remain poor. Lord, 1 am con¬ 
tent; nay, I desire to suffer here, that I may be 
happy hereafter. 

When I consider, O my God, the miserable 
fate of this rich man, how much ought I to fear 
and tremble, lest I make an ill use of what thy 
bounty has conferred upon me. W hatever thou 
bestowest upon me is thy gift; ought I not then 
be grateful for thy favour.? Shall 1 live in plenty 
and ease, and feel no pity or compassion for the 
poor and needy.? No; O most bountiful and libe¬ 
ral Lord! I will feed the hungry, give drink to 
the thirsty, clothes to the naked, and help the 
poor to the utmost of my power. It is thus I 
will return back to thee, what I have so plentifully 
received from thy bountiful hands. I will en¬ 
deavour to be rich in heaven, by placing there 
my treasures together with my heart. May acts 
of charity transport them thither. Thus do 1 hope 


89 


that to the good things thou givest me in this 
life, thou wilt mercifully add the greater good 
things of the next, since thou hast said: Blessed 
are the 'merciful^ for they shall obtain mercy. 


FRIDAY 

IN THE SECOND WEEK OP LENT. 

The Oospely J\Iatt. xxi. 33. 

There was a certain householder who plant¬ 
ed a vineyard, and made a hedge round about it, 
and dug in it a wine-press, and built a tower, and 
let it out to husbandmen: and went into a strange 
country. 34. And when the time of the fruit 
drew near, he sent his servants to the husband¬ 
men, that they might receive the fruits of it. 35. 
And the husbandmen laid hands on his servants, 
and beat one, and killed another, and stoned 
another. 36. Again he sent other servants more 
than the former: and they did to them in like 
manner. 37. And last of all he sent to them his 
son, saying: They will reverence my son. 38. 
But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said 
among themselves: This is the heir, come, let us 
kill him, and we shall have his inheritance. 39. 
And taking him they cast him forth out of the 
vineyard, and killed him. 40. When the Lord 
therefore of the vineyard shall come, what will 
he do to these husbandmen.^ 41. They say to 
him: He will bring those evil men to an evil end: 
and will let out his vineyard to other husband¬ 
men, that shall render him the fruit in due season. 
42. Jesus saith to them: Have you never read in 
the scriptures: The stone which the builders re¬ 
jected., the same is become the head of the corner? 
By the Lord this hath been done, and it is wonder¬ 
ful in our eyes. 43. Therefore I say unto you, 
the kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and 
shall be given to a nation bringing forth the fruit 
thereof. 44, And whosoever shall fall on this 


90 


stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall 
fall, it will grind into powder. 45. And when 
the chief Priests and Pharisees had heard his 
parables, they understood that he spoke of them. 
46. And seeking to lay hands on him, they feared 
the multitudes: because they held him as a prophet 

REFLECTIONS. 

By the parable in this day’s gospel, our blessed 
Saviour reproaches the Jews with obstinacy, in¬ 
gratitude to God, and a criminal abuse of his fa¬ 
vours; and at the same time threatens them with 
the most severe of punishments, viz. the taking 
away of the kingdom of God from amongst them. 
The chief Priests and Pharisees perceiving that 
the parable was designed for them, would wil¬ 
lingly have made Christ feel the effects of their 
resentment, but were afraid of the people, who 
esteemed our blessed Lord as a prophet. 

But this significant parable is not less applica¬ 
ble to Christians than to Jews. It is an instruc¬ 
tive lesson, wherein we may learn what Christ 
has done for us, in establishing the mysterious 
vineyard of his church, which he has planted, and 
watered with his own blood. We may also be¬ 
hold the ingratitude of many Christians, who by 
a criminal abuse of the graces conferred upon 
them, ought to tremble at the terrible judgment 
denounced against them. 

If we consider what Jesus Christ has under¬ 
gone, to establish his church, we shall find it to 
be the effects of those infinite pains and labour 
which he underwent while upon earth; his sacred 
blood being the cement wherewith he raised up 
this mysterious edifice, of which every Christian 
forms a part. In order to its perpetual duration, 
he continually governs and directs it by his holy 
Spirit; he refreshes and enlivens it by his holy 
sacraments, those fountains and channels of divine 
grace, especially that of the holy altar, in which 
he gives his own sacred body and blood to be the 


91 


spiritual food of our souls, and as a sure pledge 
of that infinite glory and happiness wherewith he 
will hereafter reward us in heaven, if now we 
diligently labour in this his mystical vineyard, 
and, like faithful husbandmen, render him fruit in 
due season. Thus we may learn the hapfTiness of 
being Christians, or labourers in the vineyard of 
the HOLY Catholic Church, whilst, by the in- 
scrutible dispensations of providence, so many 
are left in the desert of infidelity and unbelief. Is 
it not then natural to expect, that such great and 
singular favours should meet with an adequate re¬ 
turn of gratitude.^ But, alas! how can we suf¬ 
ficiently deplore the unaccountable insensibility 
of the greatest part of Christians, who make no 
other use of the mercies of God, than to abuse them. 

Although ingratitude is so very odious as to in¬ 
cur the detestation of every one, yet there is nothing 
more common, especially with regard to things 
that relate to God. In this vice we may observe 
four different degrees: firsts not to make a suit¬ 
able return for benefits received: secondly^ to for¬ 
get those benefits: thirdly, to return evil for good: 
and fourthly, to employ the favours received to 
the prejudice of the donor: each of these degrees 
of ingratitude are manifest in the conduct of the 
husbandmen, as related in this dky’s gospel. 1. 
In return for the favour conferred on them, in let¬ 
ting out his vineyard to them, they basply refus¬ 
ed to let him have any of its fruit. 2. Forgetful 
that they only held the vineyard upon lease, they 
acted as if they were its original lords and pro¬ 
prietors. 3. They returned their Lord evil for 
good, in the abuse of his servants, and the murder 
of his son. 4. They made the vineyard itself 
the instrument of committing those horrid out¬ 
rages against him. Behold in this parable a true 
copy of the extreme ingratitude of many Chris¬ 
tians. First, they make no return for the favours 
God has conferred on them; they neglect his holy 
graces, which would enable them to work out 
their salvation, and regard nothing but the plea- 


92 


sures and enjoyments of this life. Secondly, they 
forget what he has done for them, and bury the re¬ 
collection of their obligations to him in an idle, 
sensual, and worldly life. Thirdly, they return 
evil for^ood; for the more he is bountiful, the more 
they are ungrateful. Lastly, they make use of the 
benefits they receive, to displease and offend him. 
Their health is abused to offend him by intemper¬ 
ance and excess; their riches to displease him by 
pride and extravagance; their wit and talents to 
turn into ridicule the most serious truths of the gos¬ 
pel. How frequently are his graces and the 
sacraments of the church profaned, and con¬ 
verted into a mask to conceal their hypocrisy. 
Alas! this melancholy portrait, so notorious in 
the conduct of many Christians, cannot be accus¬ 
ed of exaggeration, to make it appear worse than 
it really is. 

But what will be the consequence of a conduct 
so opposite to the character of a Christian.^ Ah! 
the severest punishment God can inflict upon 
such ungrateful Christians, is to withdraw those 
graces which were designed for their salvation, 
and bestow them on others, who may thereby be 
saved. The husbandmen in the gospel were thus 
treated; the vineyard was taken from them, and 
let out to others. The Jews w^ere punished in 
this manner; the kingdom of God was taken from 
them, and given to the gentiles, who, by the 
preaching of the apostles, came to the knowledge 
of Jesus Christ, whilst they, in return for their 
ingratitude, remain a vagabond race, abandoned 
by God, banished from their country, without a 
te^nple or sacrifice, the scorn of the whole world. 
O how much ought we to dread so terrible a 
punishment! What the Jews have suffered for 
their wickedness and ingratitude, has been also 
the sad fate of many Christian kingdoms and states: 
the deplorable lot of many once flourishing 
churches, w^hose candlesticks are removed and 
light extinguished. God observes the same eco¬ 
nomy tow'ards particular persons: when they abuse 


his gifts, he withdraws his graces from them, and 
abandons them to the miserable consequences of 
being left to tliemselves. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O my God! how great is my obligation to bless 
and praise thy holy name for the innumerable 
favours thou hast bestowed on me! Thou hast 
called me to the knowledge of thyself, and made 
me a member of the Catholic church, wherein thou 
hast afforded me the most excellent means to 
secure my salvation. But what return have I 
made for so gracious a favour.? Alas! my God, 
I am overwhelmed with confusion at the sight of 
my ingratitude. Ah! how have I despised and 
abused thy mercies! Alas! I have just reason to 
fear lest thou shouldst withdraw thy grace from 
me. I acknowledge my unworthiness and implore 
thy mercy. O God, to all thy other favours, 
grant me sincere sorrow for my past offences, and 
grace never to offend thee more. May I daily 
become more worthy of the graces and favours 
thou hast conferred on me, and make it my con¬ 
tinual study to offer thee the acceptable fruit of 
love, gratitude and obedience. 

If love, dear Lord, requires a suitable return, 
how greatly am I bound to love thee, who hast 
loved me with an eternal love.? O may the con¬ 
sideration of so boundless a love, soften my hard 
heart, and cause it to melt in the flames of a re¬ 
ciprocal ardent love for thee. O thou only true 
and worthy object of love, let me love thee in the 
most perfect manner of which I am capable, for I 
can never love thee too much, nor as much as 
thou deservest. Burn, O my soul, with love of a 
God so amiable and deserving in himself, and so 
bountiful and good to thee. O my God, I desire 
to love thee with my whole heart, my whole 
mind, and my whole strength, purely for the sake 
of thyself alone. O may every respiration I 
breathe, be an act of the most fervent and perfect 
5 * 


94 


love of thee! I will love thee whilst I live; I 
will love thee for ever: and O may I cease to 
exist, when I desist from loving thee, O my Lord, 
and my God! 

SATURDAY 

IN THE SECOND WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, Luke, xv. 11. 

And he said: A certain man had two sons: 12 
And the younger of them said to his father: 
Father give me the portion of substance that fall- 
eth to me. And he divided unto them his sub¬ 
stance. 13. And not many days after, the young¬ 
er son gathering all together, went abroad into a 
far country, and there wasted his substance with 
living riotously. 14. And after he had spent all, 
there came a mighty famine in that country, and 
he began to be in want. 15. And he went and 
joined himself to one of the citizens of that coun¬ 
try. And he sent him into his farm to feed swine. 
16. And he would fain have filled his belly with 
the husks the swine did eat; and no man gave unto 
him. 17, And returning to himself, he said; 
How many hired servants in my father’s house, 
have plenty of bread, and I here perish with hun¬ 
ger.? 18. I will arise, and will go to my father, 
and say to him: Father I have sinned against 
heaven and before thee; 19. lam not now worthy 
to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired 
servants. 20. And rising up he went to his father 
and when he was yet a great way off, his father 
saw' him, and was moved with compassion, and 
running to him fell upon his neck and kissed him. 
21. And the son said to him: Father, I have sin¬ 
ned against heaven and before thee, I am not now 
worthy to be called thy son. 22. But the father 
said to his servants: Bring forth quickly the 
first robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on kig 


95 


hand and shoes on his feet: 23. And bring hither 
the fatted calf, and kill it, and let Us eat and make 
merry. 24. Because this my son was dead, and 
is come to life again; he was lost, and is found; 
and they began to be merry. 25. Now his elder 
son was in the field: and when he came and drew 
nigh to the house, he heard music and dancing: 
26. And he called one of the servants, and asked 
what these things meant. 27. And he said to 
him; Thy brother is come, and thy father hath 
killed the fatted calf, because he hath received 
him safe. 28. And he was angry and would not 
go in. His father therefore coming out began to 
intreat him. 29. And he answering, said to his 
father: Behold, for so many years do I serve thee, 
and I have never transgressed thy commandment, 
and yet thou hast never given me a kid to make 
merry with my friends: 30. But as soon as this 
thy son is come, who hath devoured his substance 
with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fatted 
calf. 31. But he said to him: Son thou art always 
with me, and all I have is thine. 32. But it was 
fit that we should make merry and be glad, for 
this thy brother was dead, and is come to life 
again; he was lost, and is found. 

REFLECTIONS. 

The Son of God, by having so often declared 
that he came into this world to seek after, and 
save his lost sheep, makes it apparent how sincere¬ 
ly he desires that no one should perish, but that 
every one should be saved. The same gracious 
disposition towards sinners he demonstrates by 
many significant parables; but in that which is 
read in the gospel of this day, his mercy is ex¬ 
hibited in such a tender and engaging manner, as 
cannot but afibrd the greatest consolation to all 
penitents. Sinners may here behold the kind and 
tender reception they may hope to find, if, like 
the prodigal son, they will but return to their 
father. The prodigal having demanded the por- 


96 


tion that belonged to him, and his indulgent father 
having complied with his desires, he shortly after 
went from home into a distant country, and there 
spent his fortune in a riotous manner of living; 
but falling into such extreme want as to be obliged 
to feed swine, the wretchedness of his situation 
at length opened his eyes so effectually, that he 
instantly became sensible of his criminal folly in 
quitting his father’s house. He began to reflect 
that the menial servants of his father lived in 
plenty, whilst he was ready to perish with hun¬ 
ger. He called to mind the tender aiiection of 
his father, and from thence began to hope he 
might be again received by him, if not as a son, 
of which dignity he acknowledged himself un¬ 
worthy, at least as an hired servant. Inspired 
with this hope, he resolved to make the trial, / 
will rise up^ said he, and go to my father. He 
did so immediately, and when his father, at a 
great distance, saw him returning, moved with 
compassion he ran to meet and embrace him. 
The prostrate penitent son humbly acknowledges 
his fault: Father^ I have sinned against heaven 
ayid bifore thee., and begs to be admitted into the 
number of his servants. But the affectionate pa¬ 
rent orders him to be clothed in the most costly 
robe, puts a ring on his finger, and then commands 
the fatted calf to be killed, that they might rejoice 
and make merry on account of his safe return. 

The first part of this parable exhibits a lively 
representation of the infatuated conduct of such 
sinners as, deserting the house of their heavenly 
Father, consume their substance, dissipate his 
graces and favours; and when reduced to the 
greatest distress, by a life of sin, and excess, 
then are at a loss what to do. The devil, 
who seduced them to tread in the steps of the 
prodigal, to walk with him in the ways of sin, and 
to depart further and further from their father’s 
house, does all he can to prevent them from imi¬ 
tating his repentance, and for this end he sets 
their sins before them in the worst light, and en- 


97 


deavours to persuade them that they cannot hope 
to obtain pardon—that the justice of God is too 
much incensed to afford them any mercy—and 
that if they would repent, it is too late, as they 
have no time to do penance, or make any satis¬ 
faction for the multitude and enormity of their 
sins. Thus having first persuaded them to sin, 
he then endeavours to cast them into despair; 
But this artifice of the devil must not be regard¬ 
ed, nor ought any sinner, how many and enormous 
soever his crimes may be, ever despair. The 
mercy of God infinitely surpasses the wicked¬ 
ness of any sinner; and though his justice may he 
provoked by a long habit, and continuance in 
sin, yet his mercy is always at hand, to forgive 
upon a sincere repentance. Nor must a sinner 
believe the devil, when he suggests that he has 
no time to repent; for he cannot be converted too 
late; who is at length seriously converted: and 
though a sinner may not have long to live, yet he 
has time enough to save his soul. This truth is 
grounded on the unerring word of God, which 
positively declares, that at what time soever a sin¬ 
ner is converted^ and does penance^ he shall save 
his soul, and live, (Ezek. xxxiii.) It is further 
confirmed by the examples of Mary Magdalen, 
the Samaritan woman, St. Peter and St. Paul, the 
thief on the cross, and many others; who, though 
very great sinners, yet obtained mercy, and after¬ 
wards became illustrious saints. Though we 
may have offended God grievously, still he is al¬ 
ways ready and willing to pardon us. ^s I live 
saith the Lord, I desire not the death of a sinner, 
(Ezek. xxxii.) O how happy are we, says Ter- 
tullian. Lib. de Pcenit. since God engages himself, 
and that by an oath, to shew mercy to a sinner, if 
he will but do penance! Must we not then be 
doubly miserable not to believe God, even when 
he swears in our favour.J* Ah what encourage¬ 
ment to our hopes! If any then are lost, it is 
through their own fault, because they despair, and 
even reject that mercy God offers them. To 


98 


such it may be truly said: Thy perdition is of 
thyself O Israel, (Hoseaxiii.) 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O bountiful God! how quickly and how easily 
art thou reconciled to penitent sinners! What a 
difference between thy anger, O Lord, and that 
of thy creature man! When we are once offend¬ 
ed, with what difficulty are we appeased! But 
however justly thou art offended, thou art soon 
reconciled. At the dropping of a penitent tear, 
or by an humble acknowledgment of our sins, thy 
justice is instantly appeased, and thou openest 
immediately the gates of mercy to sinners. A 
few moments of contrition suffice to procure an 
eternity of happiness. What bounty! what mercy! 
Yet permit not thy clemency and goodness, dear 
Lord, to be abused by a wanton neglect of our 
duty to thee, nor to a presumptuous audacity to 
persevere in our sins. Whilst w^e hope in thy 
mercy, let us fear to provoke thy justice. Let 
us not, by ingratitude and impenitence, provoke 
thee to abandon us, and suffer us to die in our sins. 
O Father of heaven! O indulgent and tender pa¬ 
rent; what shall I say.^* I have, alas! strayed from 
thy house, I have dissipated and wasted those goods 
of grace', those blessings which thou hast bestow¬ 
ed upon me. Reduced as I am to the greatest 
misery, what can I do but return to thee with 
a penitent and a contrite heart I will arise a?id 
go to thee, my heavenly Father, and will say: I 
have sinned against heaven and before thee. Have 
mercy on me, then, O my Father, and receive me, if 
not as a child, yet as one of the least of thy ser¬ 
vants. Clothe me with the robes of thy mercy. O 
grant me the kiss of peace, and may the angels in 
heaven rejoice at my conversion. May I never 
more go astray from, or abandon thee. I desire 
from this moment to continue faithful to thee, that 
I may one day be admitted into the mansions of 
bliss, there to praise and glorify thee, there to 
love and enjoy thee for ever. 


99 


THIRD SUNDAY IN LENT. 

The Gospel, Luke xi. 14. 

And he was casting out a devil, and the same 
was dumb, and when he had cast out the devil, 
the dumb spoke: and the multitude were in admi¬ 
ration at it. 15. But some of them said: He 
casteth out devils, by Beelzebub the prince of 
devils. 16. And others tempting, asked of him 
a sign from heaven 17. But he seeing their 
thoughts, said to them: Every kingdom divided 
against itself shall be brought to desolation, and 
house upon house shall fall. 18. And if Satan 
shall be divided against himself, how shall his 
kingdom stand .f* because you say, that through 
Beelzebub I cast out devils. 19. Now if I cast 
out devils by Beelzebub: by whom do your chil¬ 
dren cast them out.!^ Therefore they shall be 
your judges. 20. But if I by the finger of God 
cast out devils: doubtless the kingdom of God is 
come upon you. 21. When a strong man armed 
keepeth his court, those things which he possess- 
eth are in peace. 22. But if a stronger than he 
come upon him and overcome him, he will take 
away all his armour wherein he trusted, and will 
distribute his spoils. 23. He that is not with me, 
is against me: and he that gathereth not with me, 
scattereth. 24. When the unclean spirit is gone 
out of a man, he walketh through places without 
W’ater, seeking rest: and not finding, he saith: I 
will return into my house whence I came out. 25. 
And when he is come, he findeth it swept and 
garnished. 26. Then he goeth and taketh with 
him seven other spirits more wicked than him¬ 
self, and entering in they dwell there. And the 
last state of that man becometh worse than the 
first. 27. And it came to pass as he spoke these 
things, that a certain woman from the crowd lift¬ 
ing up her voice said to him: Blessed is the womb 
that bore thee, and the paps that gave thee sucJr. 


28. But he said: Yea rather, blessed are they who 
hear the word of God, and keep it. 

REFLECTIONS. 

There are dumb devils and talkative devils; 
or in other words, the devil sometimes makes 
men speak and sometimes be silent. When a 
Christian should speak for the glory of God, to 
defend the cause of virtue, or to discountenance 
vice, then to keep silence is to be possessed in 
some measure by a dumb devil, which must be 
cast out by the power of Jesus, by reflecting on 
the obligations we are under of maintaining the 
character of a Christian, and not betray it by a 
criminal silence, when the honor of God, and the 
good of our neighbour call upon us to speak the 
truth with freedom. But when we give a criminal 
liberty to our tongue, by speaking ill of our 
neighbour, or lessening his reputation, and ruin¬ 
ing his character by calumny and detraction, 
then it is that the devil speaks with an infernal 
eloquence, and that we, as his instruments, do in¬ 
finite prejudice to ourselves and others. The 
world is so full of this sort of orators that no vice 
can be said to be more common and universal 
than the sin of detraction: it is, alas! so general, 
that there is scarcely any company or .place free 
from it: and thus, whilst it is condemned by every 
one, there are few or none to be found who are 
not guilty of it. The scripture informs us that 
the Holy Ghost descended upon the apostles in 
the form of tongues; but alas! how different is 
the language of this divine spirit, from that which 
we daily hear from the mouths of Christians, who 
glory in calling themselves the disciples of Christ, 
and pretend to believe, and profess the holy doc¬ 
trine which he taught! The language of that 
divine spirit is the language of charity, bounty, 
and truth; but that of the detractor is of hatred, 
animosity, malice, and lies. So that we may ven¬ 
ture to affirm, the sin of detraction to be in some 


101 


sense a sin against the Holy Ghost, since nothing 
can be more contrary to the spirit of charity and 
union, than that which dissolves universal love, 
and causes strife, contention, and discord. No¬ 
thing can be more opposite to the spirit of boun¬ 
ty and goodness, than detraction which breathes 
nothing but malice, and produces nothing but 
evil. Nothing can be more opposed to the spirit 
of truth, than what is composed of falsehood. Be¬ 
hold how contrary this malignant spirit is to that 
of Jesus Christ. 

The spirit of Jesus Christ is a spirit of union 
and charity. He prayed to his eternal Father, 
that as they were one, so his disciples might he one, 
(Johnxvii.) JVot by an unity of nature, as the 
Father and the So7i are one and the same God, 
but by an unity of charity and love. That as 
there is but one God, one faith, and one baptism, 
so all might be as one in love. This was that ad¬ 
mirable effect which the Holy Ghost produced in 
the primitive Christians, of whom it is recorded 
in the acts of the Apostles, that they were all of one 
heart, (Acts iv.) But alas! the sin of detraction 
destroys this happy union, by separating those 
who are united by the strongest and most sacred 
bonds. Christians are members of the Church of 
Christ; the sons of that holy mother, who em¬ 
braces them all as her children, and employs her 
prayers, tears, exhortations and admonitions, that 
a fraternal charity and union may always subsist 
among them. But notwithstanding all the entrea¬ 
ties and tears of so tender a mother, the detrac¬ 
tor stabs his brother in the most sensible part, and 
takes a diabolical pleasure in robbing him of what 
is more dear to him than his life. 

The Holy Ghost is a spirit of bounty and good¬ 
ness, whilst the spirit of detraction is on the con¬ 
trary the cause of infinite evils, being the off¬ 
spring of malice and envy. The Spirit of God 
may be styled a circle of munificence, which pass¬ 
es from one good to another, and bestows nothing 
but graces and favours. This is that benevolent 


spirit which ouglit to shine in the conduct ol 
Christians. But how little of it appears in the 
behaviour of those who take pleasure in detrac¬ 
ting and speaking ill of their neighbours.? On 
the contrary, calumny may be called a circle al¬ 
ways moving from one evil to another, by con¬ 
tinually heaping fuel on the fire of strife and con¬ 
tention. It is a malignant poison, which infects 
and corrupts every thing, and spares nothing. 

The Spirit of God is a spirit of truth; but that 
of detraction is composed of falsehood and lies, 
or at best, false, suspicious, and uncertain grounds; 
and although it be an abomination in the sight of 
God, and the just object of detestation with all 
sincere Christians, nevertheless, this great and 
damnable sin is committed every day without 
scruple or remorse. After so sad, but just a des¬ 
cription of this sin, we might be astonished to find 
it so common among Christians, had we not daily 
and demonstrative proofs of so deplorable a mat¬ 
ter of fact. Are not the defects of others the 
common topic of conversation.? Are not the ac¬ 
tions and behaviour of the absent the subject of 
daily entertainment? Every one erects a court 
of judicature, sets himself up on the bench as a 
judge, and cites his neighbour to the bar; and, 
without hearing what may be said in his favour, 
immediately condemns him. But what are the 
grounds of such censures? Weak and slight sur¬ 
mises, a mere report and hearsay, which envy 
or malice consider a sufficient evidence to justify 
our uncharitable and rash judgments. How often 
does pride and conceit of ourselves induce us to 
degrade the character of another, in order that we 
may build our reputation upon the ruin of his? If 
his virtue and innocence are too clear to be open¬ 
ly denied, how often is it diminished with a but 
for all that: notwithstanding his virtue^ he is so, 
and so : he said^ or did, this or that. O that Chris¬ 
tians would seriously reflect upon the nature of 
this sin, how odious it is to God, and how pre¬ 
judicial to themselves. For with what judgment 


103 


you have judged: and with what mensure you have 
measured^ it shall be measured to you again^ (Matt, 
vii.) And judgment without mercy, to those who 
have not shewn mercy, (James ii.) 

The best remedy, and most effectual antidote 
against this sin, is always to act according to the 
golden rule of doing as ice would be done by. The 
same tender regard we desire our neighbour should 
have for our reputation, let us also have for his. 
When we have the misfortune to do amiss, or 
commit a fault, we naturally desire that others, 
before they condemn us, should consider whether 
it may not proceed from an error of judgment, and 
not of the will; that they would consider that our 
intention might be good, and that it might pro¬ 
ceed from madvertance or indiscretion. Let us 
ever observe this method in forming our judg¬ 
ment of others, and always put the best construc¬ 
tion upon the words and actions of our neighbour; 
but, above all, we must take care not to charge 
him with false crimes, nor discover his se¬ 
cret sins, unless to those whom it may concern, 
for his benefit and reformation. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O Jesus, the bright mirror of truth and justice! 
send a cherubim, who, with coals from thy holy 
altar, may purify my heart and lips from the cry¬ 
ing sin of slander and detraction. Let me never 
be guilty of what is odious to thee, prejudicial to 
my neighbour, or hurtful to myself. Let charity 
direct me to put the most favourable interpreta¬ 
tion upon the actions of others, that I may tind 
mercy at thy hands, when I shall appear to be 
judged at thy tribunal. May I leave others to 
thee, who art the supreme judge of all mankind, 
and only attend to myself, lest by incurring the 
guilt of rash judgment, I should offend thee, injure 
my brethren, and hazard the eternal salvation of 
my own soul. 


104 


Ah, my soul! let us take care to avoid the 
enormous evil of detraction. Let the reputation of 
our neighbour be as dear to us as our own. - O my 
God, place a guard before my mouth, and a gate 
of prudence before my lips, that I may not ojjend 
icitfi my tongue, (Fsal. 140.) that I may neither of¬ 
fend thee, injure my neighbour, nor murder my 
own soul. O God of love I the mirror of most 
perfect charity, let me, in some measure, strive 
to imitate thee, by never saying or doing any 
thing to the prejudice of another. May I glorify 
thee, in those gifts and graces thou bestowest up¬ 
on my neighbour, and magnify thee for thy mer¬ 
cies to all mankind. O may the spirit of love and 
charity reign in all our hearts, that we may mu¬ 
tually and sincerely love each othe#. Preserve 
us, dear Lord, in peace, unity, and concord, that 
with one heart and one voice we may praise and 
glorify thee here, and be for ever happy with thee 
hereafter. 

—• 

MONDAY 

IN THE THIIID WEEK OP LENT. 

The Gospel, Luke iv. 23. 

And he said to them: Doubtless you will say 
to me this similitude: Physician heal thyself: as 
great things as we have heard done in Caphar- 
naum, do also here in thy own country. 24. 
And he said: Amen I say to you, that no prophet 
is accepted in his own country. 25. In truth I 
say to you, there were many widows in the days 
of Elias in Israel when heaven was shut up three 
years and six months: when there was a great fa¬ 
mine throughout all the land. 26. And to none of 
them was Elias sent, but to a widow at Sarepta 
of Sidon. 27. And there were many lepers in 
Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet: and none 
of them was cleansed but Naaman the Syrian. 28. 


105 


And all they in the synagogue hearing these things 
were hiled with anger. 29. And they rose up 
and thrust him out of the city: and they brought 
him to the brow of the hill, whereon their city 
was built that they might cast him down head¬ 
long. 30. But he passing through the midst of 
them, went his way. 

REFLECTIONS. 

Zeal, when tempered hy discretion, is an ex¬ 
cellent v irtue, and a necessary ingredient in the 
character of a good Christian. To have a well- 
ordered zeal for the good of others, we must imi¬ 
tate God himself, in the most excellent of all his 
works. But where zeal is not properly direct¬ 
ed, it ceases to be a virtue, and becomes a .most 
dangerous evil. The ardour which the Pharisees 
showed, was a fiery zeal, the effects of pride and 
hypocrisy, which neither terminated in the glory 
of God, or the good of their neighbour; nor was 
it governed either by reason or religion; and for 
this our blessed Lord frequently reprimanded 
them. But though his reproofs were given in the 
mildest and most engaging manner, and with a 
sincere desire of their conversion, yet they made 
no other return than to redouble their false and 
injurious calumnies against his sacred person and 
doctrine, and even tlieir attempts to takeaway his 
life. He nevertheless continued to reprove their 
obstinacy and infidelity, and plainly told them that 
notwithsianding their boasted prerogative of be¬ 
ing the children of Abraham, and the peculiar 
people of God, yet, having rendered themselves 
unworthy of the continuance of his favour, the 
mercy they had rejected should be shown to the 
gentiles. Intimating this to them by the cure of 
Naaman the Syrian, and the prophet Elias being 
sent to a poor widow of Sarepta; They laid hold 
of him, with an intent to fling him down the hill 
on which the city of Jerusalem was built; hut he 
passed through them, and went away: for his time 


106 

of suffering not being come, they could not exe¬ 
cute their design. 

Among other instructions conveyed to us in the 
gospel of this day, are the qualities of a true Chris¬ 
tian zeal for the glory of God^ and the good of 
our neighbour. This our blessed Saviour teaches 
us by the best of methods—his own incompara¬ 
ble example; a true zeal for others must be con¬ 
formable to the zeal we ought to have for our¬ 
selves; for where this is’wanting, it may be just¬ 
ly suspected as false, or at least doubtful. These 
are the characters of that Christian zeal which the 
gospel recommends. Let our zeal then appear 
ever so ardent, if it be not possessed of these 
qualities, it is only counterfeit—glittering with¬ 
out, but of no instrinsic value. 

In the order of charity, our zeal should be first 
directed to ourselves, and then towards others. 
If we are careless of ourselves, how can it be ex¬ 
pected we should have any sincere regard for our 
neighbour; for how is it possible that those who 
are indifferent about their own salvation, should 
give themselves any concern about the salvation 
of others ? I speak not here of those whose cha¬ 
racter and office oblige them to take care of those 
under their charge, but of Christians in general, 
who ought to have a zeal for the spiritual good 
of each other. Such ought in the first place, be 
careful that their lives are conformable to the 
maxims of the gospel, and then they are we\] 
qualified to exercise their zeal towards their 
neighbour, and endeavour to reclaim him from 
vice to virtue; for what can be more ridiculous, 
than for a blasphemer to reprimand another for 
swearing, or for a drunkard to preach sobrie¬ 
ty; the answer to such would undoubtedly be: 
Physician cure thyself We forfeit a just pre¬ 
tence to reform others, when we do not correct 
ourselves; it is for this reason our blessed Lord 
gives to such, this severe reproof: Why dost 
thou see a mote in thy brother's eye., and dost not 
behold the beam in thy own eye ^ HypocritCy 


107 


Jirst draw the beam out of thy oivn eye, and then 
thou shall see to draio the mote out of thy hrother'^s 
eye, (Matthew, vii.) We must first exercise 
our zeal in reforming those abuses of which our¬ 
selves may be guilty. Where this rule is not ob¬ 
served, our zeal will be not only unprofitable to 
ourselves, but of little service to others. 

No evil is attended with more mischievous 
consequences, than an ignorant blind zeal, the 
sad eftects of which, are testified by the innu¬ 
merable heresies and schisms it has produced in 
the church, to the eternal ruin of thousands, the 
authors whereof ever pretended a zeal for God^s 
honour and the purity of the faith Hence being 
wilfully ignorant, and refusing to be taught, or 
submit to the authority of those placed over 
them, and appointed for their guides, they pre¬ 
cipitate themselves and their seduced followers 
into the ditch of error, and become irrecovera¬ 
bly lost. Cbristian zeal is likewise to be tem¬ 
pered with moderation, and not exceed the 
bounds of that meekness prescribed in the gospel, 
which can be measured by no better rule, than 
what we desire may be observed towards our¬ 
selves. This will exclude hastiness, and impa¬ 
tience, the natural offspring of false zeal. We 
are, generally speaking, very sweet and indul¬ 
gent towards ourselves; let us then show the 
same tenderness towards our brethren, and those 
we desire to amend. Let us all reform ourselves 
one by another, but let each reform himseit first, 
and then with mildness and fraternal charity en¬ 
deavour to reclaim his neighbour. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O sweet Jesus; that was inspired with so strong 
and ardent a zeal for the glory of thy heavenly 
Father, and the salvation of mankind, enlighten 
me, I beseech thee, by thy grace, and fill my 
heart with the same holy fire, that I may be not 
only zealous for the good of my own soul, but 


108 


likewise for that of my neighbour. But let this 
holy ardour be so regulated by true charity, that I 
may never neglect myself, nor attempt to reform 
others with heat or passion, nor transgress the 
rules of humility, obedience, and submission to 
those whom thou hast placed over me, and thus 
•preserve the unity of the faith in the bonds of 
peace. 

O Prince of Peace! and lover of unity, pre¬ 
serve my soul in peace. Grant me that peace 
which surpasses all understanding; that peace, 
which the world can neither give nor take away. 
Grant me peace with thee, my God, in the pardon 
of my sins, and peace wdth myself, in the testi¬ 
mony of a good conscience, void of guilt in thy 
sight, and in the sight of man. Peace with my 
neighbour, by never doing him any injury. De¬ 
liver me, O Lord, from a warm and intemperate 
zeal. Let me always do good to others, and en¬ 
deavour to procure their welfare by a tender 
condescension to their weakness. May true 
charity be always my guide in my intercourse 
with others, that I may gain souls to the know¬ 
ledge of thy law, whereby they ma}" learn to serve 
thee in spirit and in truth. 


TUESDAY 

IN THE THIRD WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, Matt, xviii. 15. 

But if thy brother shall offend against thee, 
go, and reprove him betw^een thee and him alone. 
If he shall hear thee, thou shalt gain thy brother. 
16. But if he will not hear thee, take with thee 
one or tw^o more: that in the mouth of two or 
three witnesses every wwd may stand. 17. And 
if he will not hear them, tell the church. And if 
he will not hear the church, let him be to thee 
as the heathen and the publican. 18. Amen I say 


109 


to you, whatsoever you shall bind upon earth, 
shall be bound also in heaven ; and whatsoever 
you shall loose upon earth, shall be loosed also in 
heaven. 19. Again I say to you, that if two of 
you shall agree upon earth, concerning any thing 
whatsoever they shall ask, it shall be done for 
them by my Father who is in heaven. 20. For 
where there are two or three gathered together 
in my name, there am I in the midst of them. 21. 
Then Peter came unto him, and said : Lord, how 
often shall my brother olfend against me, and I 
forgive him .? ’till seven times ? 22. Jesus saith 

to him : I say not to thee, ’till seven times; but 
'till seventy times seven times. 

REFLECTIONS. 

From the gospel of yesterday we spoke of zeal 
in general, and how it was to be managed so as to 
become acceptable to God,—advantageous to 
ourselves,—and profitable to others ; and from 
the gospel of this day, we may learn how to ex¬ 
ercise it in respect to one of the most important 
objects, to witj frateryial correction^ a duty not to 
be omitted on proper occasions, provided it be 
regulated according to the advice given by our 
blessed Saviour. We live in an age in which 
there are vices enough to correct, and no want of 
zealots to correct them. Almost every one is be¬ 
come a judge of his brother, and the faults of 
others is the common topic of conversation. But 
the reason why corrections of this kind do more 
harm than good is, because the advice not being 
properly given, is seldom or ever well taken. 
Hence, little or no reformation ensues. 

As the duty of correcting, or giving advice to 
another, is so exceedingly delicate, we must be 
careful to observe those conditions which the 
case requires ; for if we fail in them we have lit¬ 
tle reason to expect our advice will produce any 
good effect. The necessary conditions are, that 
we give our advice piously, prudently, sweetly, 
6 


110 


and efficaciously: first piously, or out of a true 
zeal for the glory of God, and the good of our 
brother’s soul, when we see it in danger of be¬ 
ing lost by sin. There are, alas; too many who 
declaim against vice: but then it is against those 
vices which are particularly contrary to their 
own humour and inclination. An extravagant 
spendthrift is very eloquent against covetousness 
and avarice. The miser as severely condemns 
the prodigal. There are others of a peevish 
melancholy temper, who continually find fault 
with the conduct of others,—for with them no¬ 
thing is right. There are also many whose re¬ 
proofs are the effects of envy, who censure 
others not so much for their faults, as for their 
great and distinguished qualities. But, alas! how 
little do we discover here of true charity, or zeal 
for the glory of God, or spiritual good of our 
neighbour.^ Whoever acts not on these motives 
is by no means qualified to give advice to another. 
To this may be added that in order to give our 
advice piously, we must ourselves be free from 
those vices we correct. To succeed in fraternal 
correction, we must not only speak, but likewise 
act: that is, we must by an unblemished life sliew 
good example, which will give additional strength 
to our words. A second condition to be observ¬ 
ed in giving advice is prudence. For if it be not 
given with prudence and discretion, and at a 
proper time also, our zeal, however charitable 
and well meant, may fail of success. We must 
also have regard to the temper and quality of the 
person to whom we give our advice, and say no¬ 
thing but what is necessary to convince him of 
the danger and folly of the vice we would correct. 
Our admonition should be also weW timed, and 
delivered in private between himself and us, not 
4 n public, lest we should expose his iaults to the 
world. Hence our blessed Lord says : If thy 
brother hath sinned against thee, go, and repre¬ 
hend him between thee and him alone. (Matt, vii.) 
We must endeavour likewise to speak when he 


Ill 


is properly disposed to hear us. TIius would 
we give advice to a passionate person or to a 
drunkard, we must stop till his passion is over, 
or until he is sober: for whilst in a passion or 
drunk, he is incapable of hearing or attending to 
what we say; but when cool and sober, then he 
is able to attend to our advice, and reflect on his 
follies and extravagancies. In all our admoni¬ 
tions, to prudence we must join sweetness, or an 
engaging air of true charity, without the least 
mixture of heat or passion. We must, like the 
good Samaritan, {Luke x.) pour oil and wine in¬ 
to his wounds. Corrosives, though in some cases 
necessary, are never to be applied, but when le- 
hatives prove inelfectual, aiid on persons over 
whom we have authority. This is admirably 
figured to us in holy scripture, by the figs which 
the prophet applied to the sore of King Ezekias: 
(Isaias xxxviii,) from whence we may learn, that 
all admonitions ought to have nothing in them but 
sweetness, and that the least harshness will ren¬ 
der them useless if not dangerous. Behold with 
how much address and gentleness the prophet 
Nathan reproved David! The royal psalmist as 
soon as he perceived it, condemned liimself, and 
thereby obtained pardon. (2 Kings xii.) 

This sweet and mild manner is not incompati¬ 
ble with speaking elficaciously and with authori¬ 
ty, especially to tliose under our care, since 
a moderate and becoming warmth is sometimes 
necessary to make an impression upon, and excite 
those to whom we speak. Our bl essed Saviour, 
who was all mildness and sweetness, both spoke 
and acted with authority, w hen he drove the buy¬ 
ers and sellers out of the temple, { Johii ii.) 
When warmth becomes necessary, and is omitted 
it involves us in the guilt of the high priest Heli, 
who reproved his sons, but because he did it in a 
faint and inefficacious manner, he experienced 
that terrible punishment threatened: / have there¬ 
fore sworn, says the Lord, to the house of Ileli, 
that the iniquity of that house^ shall not be expi- 


112 


»ted by victims and gifts for ever^ (I Kings iii.) 
The wicked shall die in his iniquity^ but at thy 
hand will I require his blood. (Ezek. iii.) That 
we may not be involved in this menace, let us en¬ 
deavour by admonition to reclaim our brother 
from the paths of iniquity into the ways of salva¬ 
tion, as we shall thereby greatly contribute to 
the advancement of our own glory and happiness 
in heaven. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O Jesus, grant me the spirit of true Christian 
charity, whereby I may endeavour to reclaim 
those who are gone astray, by the gentle ways 
of kindness and condescension. Let me never be 
so far transported by a false zeal as to hate their 
persons, but rather love them as my brethren, and 
thus endeavour to gain every one to thee. Let 
me never partake of their crimes by a criminal 
silence, or a neglect of seasonable reproofs and 
admonitions: and may true charity and a sincere 
desire of doing good, be my principal motive, that 
I may find acceptance with thee. 

O spirit of charity and divine love; come and 
take possession of my heart and soul, that I may 
be filled with love and charity towards others. 
O Jesus, God of love, infinite source of all good¬ 
ness, thou hast said, that by loving one another 
we shall be known to l)e thy disciples. O may I 
give daily proofs that I belong to thee, by truly 
loving my neighbour as myself Let me make 
this love evident, by doing all I can to assist him 
in loving and serving thee. May I be ever ready 
and willing to instruct the ignorant, counsel the 
doubtful, and correct sinners with prudence, mild¬ 
ness, and a well tempered zeal, to the glory of 
thy holy name, and to the benefit of their souls 
as ivell as my own. 


113 


WEDNESDAY 

IN THE THIRD WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, Matt. xv. 1. 

Then came to him from Jerusalem scribes and 
pharisees, saying: 2. Why do thy disciples 
transgress the tradition of the ancients.^ For they 
wash not their hands when they eat bread. 3. 
But he answering, said to them: Why do you al¬ 
so transgress the commandment of God for your 
tradition.^ For God said: 4. Honour thy father 
and mother: And He that shall curse father or 
mother let him die the death. 6. But you say: 
Whosoever shall say to his father or mother. The 
gift whatsoever proceedeth from me, shall profit 
thee. 6. And he shall not honour his father or 
his mother: and you have made void the com¬ 
mandment of God for your tradition. 7. Ye hy¬ 
pocrites, well hath Isaias prophesied of you, say¬ 
ing: 8. This people honoureth me with their lips: 
but their heart is far from me. 9. Jlnd in vain 
do they worship me, teaching doctrines and com¬ 
mandments of men. 10. And having called to¬ 
gether the multitudes unto him, he said to them: 
Hear ye and understand. 11. Not that which 
goeth into the mouth, defileth a man : but what 
cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man. 
12. Then came his disciples, and said to him; 
Dost thou know that the pharisees, when they 
heard this word, were scandalized } 13. But he 

answering said: Every plant which my heavenly 
Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up. 14. 
Let them alone: they are blind, and leaders of the 
blind And if the blind lead the blind, both fall 
into the pit. 15. And Peter answering, said to 
him: Explain to us this parable. 16. But he said: 
Are you also yet without understanding.? 17. 
Do you not understand that whatsoever entereth 
into the mouth, goeth into the belly, and is cast 


114 


out into the priv}"? IS. But the things which pro¬ 
ceed out of the mouth, come forth from the heart, 
and those things defile a man. 19. For out of the 
heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, 
fornications, thefts, false testimonies, blasphemies. 
20. These are the things that defile a man. But 
to eat with unwashed hands doth not defile a man. 

REFLECTIONS. 

The enormity of the detestable sin of hypocri- 
cy may be easily learned from the many severe 
woes our Saviour pronounces on the hypocritical 
scribes and pharisees in this day’s gospel. Nor 
is it a sinless dangerous in its consequences, 
than odious before God; consequences, not on¬ 
ly terrible with respect to the hypocrite, but 
to others also, for which he must stand ac¬ 
countable. From the gospel of this day, we 
might speak of hypocrisy itself, and shew its 
enormity: but let us rather consider its evil con¬ 
sequences with regard to those who take occa¬ 
sion from the dissimulation of some, to entertain 
unfavourable notions of religion; raise obstacles 
in the way of virtue; or permit themselves to be 
imposed upon by the false pretences of hypo¬ 
crites. Of these three descriptions, the first sort 
are libertines, or modern free-thinkers; the se¬ 
cond^ some well meaning people; and the thirdy 
the weak and imprudent. 

Since the first establishment of the Christian re¬ 
ligion, libertines who were ever averse to follow its 
maxims, or regulate their lives by the precepts oB 
the gospel, have always endeavoured to repre¬ 
sent it as a mere invention, or piece of priestcraft 
contrived to enslave the minds of men, and keep 
them in awe; and from beholding the behaviour 
of some, who have endeavoured to conceal their 
vices under the mask of virtue, they rashly con¬ 
clude, that religion itself is no more than an arti¬ 
fice, to impose upon the multitude. But to demj 
religion because some pretend to it, who have it 
not, is but a weak mode of reasoning, not consis- 


115 


teut with that profound judgment, these gentlemen 
pretend to, who boast they are masters of reason, 
since we may venture to affirm, that the only 
reason why they reject religion in speculation is, 
because they have tirst cast it off in practice. 
Resolving to give full scope to their passions, 
and knowing themselves to have no claim to vir¬ 
tue, they are pleased with the notion, that those 
who appear virtuous are not so in reality, and be¬ 
cause they discover some hypocrites, conclude that 
all who appear in behalf of religion are equally so. 
Thus, having no idea of true piety, they would 
fain persuade themselves and others, that it is no 
more than a specious phantom, an imaginary ex¬ 
cellence not to be found among men. Or if by 
the force of undeniable conviction they are oblig¬ 
ed to grant, that there are Christians of solid 
piety, they endeavour to degrade and expose them 
to ridicule, and from the dissimulation of some, 
to cast the same stigma on those who practise re¬ 
ligion, in sincerity and truth. 

Hypocrisy gives scandal to the sincere pious 
Christian, and throws many obstacles in the way 
of virtue. How many, rather than be consider¬ 
ed hypocrites, and expose themselves to the ridi¬ 
cule and laughter of the world, are unwilling to 
appear publicly in the cause of virtue. They, in 
a great measure hide their candle under a bushel, 
instead of letting their light shine before men. (Matt. 
V.) The apprehension of being represented as a 
bigot or a hypocrite, prevents them from attempt¬ 
ing any thing great and heroic: and though they 
are virtuously disposed, and have a sincere hor¬ 
ror for any kind of vice, yet a secret shame pre¬ 
vents them from speaking or acting with proper 
courage and resolution. But is not this fearing 
man rather than God? a. conduct in reality as un¬ 
reasonable as it is criminal. A Christian, whose 
profession obliges him to fear nothing but God, 
ought not to be afraid of being censured and 
laughed at by the world. Can he pretend, that to 
be devout is only to expose himself to be called 


116 


a hypocrite? whereas this is the very reavSon why 
his zeal for religion and piety should increase, to 
convince libertines and others, that whatever they 
are pleased to say, true piety is no phantom! since 
there are those who know how to adore God in 
spirit and in truth. (John iv.) It is his duty to 
convince them, that notwithstanding their pre¬ 
judices and passions, they may be virtuous if they 
please, since they see others in the same state of 
life with themselves, abstain from sin, and prac¬ 
tice true and solid virtue. Let no one then excuse 
himself from leading a virtuous life, but let him 
rather rejoice to sufl’er ridicule in so glorious a 
cause. If it be a magnanimous action to espouse 
the cause of a suffering friend in this world, shall 
a Christian abandon the cause of God, through 
an apprehension of undergoing some raillery for 
his sake? If through shame we abandon virtue 
now, what shall we do at the hour of death, when 
we shall be abandoned by the world, by all crea¬ 
tures, and even by God himself? Ah! we shall 
then see our folly, when, alas! it will be too late 
to retrieve it. 

Another pernicious effect of dissimulation is, 
that the weak and imprudent are often imposed 
upon by the counterfeit sanctity of hypocrites. 
It is this has caused those disorders and divisions 
in the church of God; for heretics w^ere never 
more successful than when they put on the mask 
of piety, affecting a sanctified exterior, condemn¬ 
ing the smallest relaxations from ancient discip¬ 
line, preaching up mortification and the strictest 
morals, and thus, under the specious word re/or- 
mation, they draw many simple and unwary souls 
after them into the pit of eternal perdition. These 
are the baneful effects of hypocrisy; and if, as our 
Saviour says, {Matt, vii.) we may know the tree 
by its fruits, we may easily discover what a bad 
tree it is. How much then does it behove us to 
be upon our guard, not to be surprised or imposed 
on, or give others reason to suspect that we are 
hypocrites ourselves? 


117 


ASPIRATIONS. 

O God of sincerity and truth, to whom the se¬ 
crets of all hearts are known, preserve me by thy 
grace from being infected by this odious vice, or 
being affected by its ill consequences. Let me 
acknowledge the truth of that holy religion thou 
hast revealed; and with courage and sincerity, 
practise its duties. Let no worldly motives make 
me afraid or ashamed to own myself thy servant. 
Grant me an ardent and heroic zeal for the glory 
of thy name, and the salvation of souls. Let liber¬ 
tines scoff at, and deride me, I will esteem it my 
greatest happiness, and consider it more glorious 
to suffer for thee, than to be master of the whole 
world. Thou art, O Jesus, my master, and I am 
thy disciple; thou art my Lord, and I am thy ser¬ 
vant; and I will account it the highest honour to 
be treated as thou wast. With thy holy apostle 
I will say; God forbid that I shotild glory but in 
the cross of C/iWsf, Gal. vi. 

Yes, adorable Saviour, I am content to suffer 
all manner of reproaches, whilst I endeavour to 
serve thee with zeal and fervour. Grant me the 
grace to discharge my religious duties with a 
sincere and upright heart; with purity of intention, 
devoid of all human respect, dissimulation, or 
hypocrisy. O Lord, to whom the secrets of all 
hearts are known, and frgm whom nothing is con¬ 
cealed, let me not deceive myself by an empty 
display or outward profession of religion only. 
May a sincere desire to please thee alone, be the 
principle of all my actions. May I love thee 
above all other things. May I, with a firm reso¬ 
lution, constantly endeavour to tend towards thee, 
until I come finally to the enjoyment of thee, in 
the mansions of everlasting happiness. 

6 ^ 


118 


THURSDAY 

IN THE THIRD WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, Luke iv. 38. 

And Jesus rising up out of the synagogue, went 
into Simon’s house. And Simon’s wife’s mother 
was taken with a fever: and they besought him 
for her. 39. And standing over her, he command¬ 
ed the fever; and it left her. And immediately 
rising she ministered unto them. 40. And when 
the sun was down, all they that had any sick with 
divers diseases, brought them to him. But he 
laying his hands on every one of them, healed 
them. 41. And devils went out of many, crying 
out, and saying: Thou art the Son of God. And 
he rebuking them suffered them not to speak, for 
they knew that he was Christ. 42. And when it 
was day, going out, he went into a desert place: 
and the multitudes sought him, and came to him: 
and they prayed him that he should not depart 
from them. 43. And he said: I must preach the 
kingdom of God to other cities also: for therefore 
am I sent. 44. And he was preaching in the 
synagogues of Galilee. 

REFLECTIONS. 

Sickness, as it afflicts the body, and prevents 
us from attending to our temporal concerns, is an 
evil from which we may lawfully desire to be 
delivered. But when considered in a spiritual 
light, and in the order of grace, it will appear 
a blessing, from which great advantage may be 
reaped. The gospel of this day relates, that St. 
Peter’s mother-in-law lay sick of a fever: and we 
from the circumstances attending her sickness and 
cure, may learn to turn our disease to the best ad¬ 
vantage. She was confined to her bed, when St. 
Peter, and the other disciples besought Jesus 
Christ, that he would come and cure her. Being 


119 


restored to health, she rose up and ministered to 
her divine physician. These are the circum¬ 
stances, from which we may learn. Firsts That 
God frequently makes use of corporeal sickness 
as a means to preserve us from the temptations to 
which we are exposed by an uninterrupted state 
of health. Secondly^ That in time of sickness, 
we should have recourse to Jesus Christ, as to 
our chief physician. 7'hirdly^ That when, by his 
mercy, he has restored us to health, we may make 
a right use of so great a blessing, by consecrat¬ 
ing it to his service. 

Vye should be convinced from experience that 
the world is full of dangers. As a preservative 
against them, God is sometimes pleased to con¬ 
fine us to our beds by sickness, in order to with¬ 
draw us from the dangerous occasions of sin, and 
thereby afford us time to consider the world in 
its true light, and by a virtue of necessity, im¬ 
prove our leisure hours by serious reflections. 
The mind being now at liberty, the objects whicli 
before so powerfully attracted our attention, have 
no longer any force. For, what are riches to a 
person who has no health to enjoy them.? What 
are honours to him who sees death at hand ready 
to lay him in the grave, there to become the food 
of worms.? What, alas! are pleasures to a sick 
man, whose thoughts are now wholly employed 
how he may avoid for the future, what he has 
found to have been so prejudicial to his health. 

Holy Job compares the life of man upon earth 
to a warfare, (Job, vii.) since we find ourselves 
continually exposed to the assaults of the world, 
the flesh, and the devil, our most implacable ene¬ 
mies. The time of sickness may be called a kind 
of retreat from their fury, wherein we breathe, 
and as it were rally our scattered forces, that 
we may resist them with the greatest vigour. 
Such retreats are frequently the forerunners of a 
glorious victory. It is like retiring into a strong 
fortress, where secure from the attempts of our 
enemies, we are at leisure to consider our condi- 


120 


tion, and take such necessary precautions, as may 
secure us the victory in future combats. Besides 
this, we are taught by the gospel of this day, how 
to obtain another favourable advantage in time of 
sickness, by having recourse to the advice and 
assistance of Jesus Christ, our chief physician. 

When God afflicts us with sickness, or ill 
health, he does not forbid us to apply for advice 
to a physician, or to use any other lawful means 
for our recovery; but we must in the first place 
have recourse to him, by acknowledging our ill¬ 
ness to be the effect of his blessed will: and from 
him expect our cure; for without him, neither the 
ablest physician, nor best medicines in the uni¬ 
verse can restore us to health, since it is only he 
who is the physician of our souls, as well as our 
bodies, that knows best what is most expedient 
and profitable for both. Corporeal sickness fre¬ 
quently contributes to the health of the soul, and 
therefore we are no further to desire our recovery, 
than as it may be conducive to the glory of God, 
and our own spiritual good. In our sickness let 
us always imitate St. Peter’s mother-in-law, who 
for her recovery had recourse to Jesus Christ, 
(Matt, vii.;) and the centurion, who addressed 
himself to our Saviour, in behalf of his sick ser¬ 
vant. To this we must add patience and resigna¬ 
tion, not only as to the time and manner of our 
recovery, but also as to the pain and trouble at¬ 
tending sickness. A fretful, restless temper, 
murmurs and complaints, contribute to no other 
purpose than to retard our cure. They deprive 
us of, or at least diminish, the merit of our suffer¬ 
ing, and are tiresome and disgusting to those who 
assist us. We must therefore be upon our guard 
against fretfulness and impatience, and beg of God 
to strengthen our weak nature by his grace, that 
all our sufferings may be consecrated to his glory 
and our own good;_ and that if it should please 
him to restore our health, we may make a pro¬ 
per use of it, by dedicating it to his service. 

We are further informed in this day’s gospel, 


121 


how St. Peter’s mother-in-law being cured by our 
Saviour, immediately rose up and ministered to 
him. By this we are taught the use we should 
make of our health w^hen restored to us. Those 
w^ho are dangerously sick are generally very libe¬ 
ral in their promises of amendment of life, if it 
should please God to restore them to their health; 
but it too frequently happens, that after a recovery, 
these promises are no Ipnger remembered. A 
horrible ingratitude, deserving the severest pun¬ 
ishment! If then God hears our prayers, and 
raises us from a bed of sickness, let us religious¬ 
ly observe the promises we have made, and with 
a fresh state of health, serve him with redoubled 
vigour and fidelity; and then our sickness will 
prove, not unto death, but unto life, both here and 
hereafter. 


ASPIRATIONS. 

O Jesus, W'hen I reflect upon my past ingrati¬ 
tude, I am overwhelmed with shame and confusion! 
How often have I had recourse to thee, and thou 
hast mercifully granted my request.-^ But alas! I 
have not risen up and waited upon thee. Pardon, 
dear Lord, this ungrateful behaviour, and make 
me more faithful to my duty hereafter. Whene¬ 
ver it shall please thee to visit me wfith thy fa¬ 
therly corrections, let me patiently submit to tby 
holy will and pleasure, and place my whole hope 
and confidence in thee alone, and in all things de¬ 
sire nothing but the accomplishment of thy holy 
will. 

May I never more be ungrateful for thy bounty, 
O my God! but may tbe daily experience I have 
of thy goodness always fill my heart with the 
warmest sentiments of gratitude. In all the dis¬ 
pensations of thy providence, and in whatever 
thou permittest to befal me, may I always per¬ 
ceive and adore tby merciful designs for my great¬ 
er good. In sickness I will bow down and adore 
thy sovereign will, and patiently suffer ail its 


122 


pains, as fatherly chastisements for my offences- 
I will adore thee, punishing me here, in order 
that thou mayest spare me hereafter. When it 
shall please thee to restore me to health, I will 
consecrate it entirely to thy service. Confirm 
me, O Lord, in my good purposes by thy grace, 
and suffer me no longer to prove unfaithful to 
thee. 


FRIDAY 

IN THE THIRD WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, John, vi. 5. 

that time: Jesus came to a city of Sama¬ 
ria; whicli is called Sichar; near the parcel of 
ground, which Jacob gave to his son Joseph. G. 
Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore be¬ 
ing wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well. 
It was about the sixth hour. 7. There cometh a wo¬ 
man of Samaria to draw water. Jesus saith to her: 
Give me to drink. 8. (For his disciples ivere 
gone into the city to buy food.) 9. Then that 
Samaritan woman said to him: How dost thou, 
being a Jew, ask of me to drink; who am a Sa¬ 
maritan woman ? For the Jews do not commu¬ 
nicate with the Samaritans. 10. Jesus answer¬ 
ed, and said to her: If thou didst know the gift 
of God, and who it is that saith to thee. Give me 
to drink; thou perhaps wouldsthave asked of him, 
and he would liave given thee living water. 11, 
The woman saith to him: Sir, thou hast nothing 
wherein to draw, and the well is deep.^^ from 
whence then hast thou living water.? 12. Art thou 
greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the 
well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, 
and his cattle.? 13. Jesus answered, and said to 
her: Who.soever drinketh of this water shall thirst 
again: but he that shall drink of the water that I 
shall give him, shall not thirst for ever. 14, But 


the water that I shall give him, shall become in 
him a founlain of water springing up into ever¬ 
lasting life. 15. The woman saith to him: Sir, 
give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor 
come hither to draw. 16. Jesus saith to her. 
Go, call thy husband, and come hither. 17. The 
woman answered and said: I have no husband. 
Jesus said to her: Thou hast said well, I have no 
husband: 18. For thou hast had five husbands: 
and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband. 
This thou hast said truly. 19. The woman saith 
to him: Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. 
20 Our fathers adored on this mountain, and you 
say, that at Jerusalem is the place where men 
must adore. 21. Jesus saith to her: Woman be¬ 
lieve me, the hour cometh, when j ou shall nei¬ 
ther on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, adore 
the Father. 22. You adore that which you 
know not: ^^e adore that which we know; for 
salvation is of the Jews. 23. But the hour com¬ 
eth, and now is, when the true adorers shall adore 
the Father in spirit and in truth. For the father 
also seeketh such to adore him. 24. God is a 
spirit, and they that adore him must adore him 
in spirit and in truth: 25. The woman saith to 
him: I know that the Messias cometh (who is 
called Christ) therefore when he is come, he will 
tell us all things. 26. Jesus saith to her: I am 
he who am speaking with thee. 27. And imme¬ 
diately his disciples came, and they wondered 
that he talked with the woman. Yet no man 
said: What seekest thou, or why talkest thou 
with her.? 28. The woman therefore left her 
water-pot, and went her way into the city, and 
saith to the men there: 29. Come, and see a man 
who hath told me all things that ever I did. Is 
not he the Christ.? 30. Then they went out of 
the city and came to him. 31. In the mean time 
the disciples prayed him, saying: Rabbi, eat. 32. 
But he said to them; I hav e meat to eat which 
ye know not of. 33. The disciples therefore 
said one to another: Hath any man brought him 


m 


any thing to eat? 34. Jesus saith to them: My 
meat is to do the will of him that sent me, that 1 
may perfect his work. 35. Do not you say, 
there are yet four months, and then the harvest 
cometh? Behold I say to you, lift up your eyes, 
and see the countries, for they are white already 
to harvest. 36. And he that reapeth receiveth 
wages, and gathereth fruit unto everlasting life; 
that both he that soweth, and he that reapeth, 
may rejoice together. 37. For in this is that 
saying true: that it is one man that soweth, and 
it is another that reapeth. 38. I have sent you 
to reap that in which you did not labour: others 
have laboured, and you have entered into their 
labours. 39. Now of that city many of the 
Samaritans believed in him, for the w'ord of the 
woman giving testimony: He told me all that 
ever I did. 40. So when the Samaritans were 
come to him, they desired him that he would tar¬ 
ry there. And he abode there two days: 41. 
And many more believed on him because of his 
own word. 42. And they said to the woman: 
We now believe, not for thy saying: for we our¬ 
selves have heard him, and know that this is in¬ 
deed the Saviour of the world. 

REFLECTIONS. 

The miracles of nature which our blessed 
Saviour wrought by curing the sick and the lame, 
by restoring sight to the blind, and raising those 
to life who were dead, being not less surprising 
than those of his grace and mercy shewn in the 
conversion of sinners, sufficiently prove the sin¬ 
cere and ardent desire he had, that all should be 
saved, and that no one should perish. But never 
did the mercy of the Son of God, shine with 
greater lustre, than in the conversion of the Sa¬ 
maritan woman, as related in this day’s gospel. 
He enters into conversation with her, and by his 
manner of reproaching her for her criminal course 


125 


oi iife, in telling her all she had done, he wrought 
in her a sincere conversion. 

There is this difference to be observed be¬ 
tween the miracles of nature and those of grace. 
The first are the sole effects of the power of God, 
without any concurrence on our parts. The se¬ 
cond are the effects of his goodness^ but which 
require the co-operation of our wills. God is, 
indeed, the principal agent, who gives us grace, 
to which man in the second place, co-operates by 
his will. This will appear from the following re¬ 
marks upon this day’s gospel. 

Our blessed Lord desired the conversion of 
the Samaritan woman, and for that reason he first 
went and sat dowm by the well, where he knew 
she would come to draw water.? secondly.^ he gave 
her a knowledge of the deplorable state she was 
in; and thirdly, from thence inspired her with a 
sincere desire of being converted. This is his 
mode of proceeding with all sinners. He search¬ 
es after them; he calls upon them publicly by 
the ministers of his word; he speaks to them in 
private by the checks of their own conscience, 
and the inspirations of his holy spirit. He search¬ 
es after them in all those favourable occasions 
he gives them of being converted, and by that 
patience with which he waits for their return. 
He sets before them the enormity of their crimes, 
the punishments due to them, and the absolute 
necessity of repentance to prevent their being 
eternally lost. This strikes them with a holy 
fear, and a desire of obtaining the means of salva¬ 
tion. Hence they conceive a horror of their past 
sins, and being more enlightened, by receiving 
greater degrees of grace, they detest their sins, 
not only as prejudicial to themselves, but as odi¬ 
ous, offensive, and displeasing to God. Thus by 
a sincere conversion, and an entire change of life 
and manners, we behold them restored from the 
slavery of sin, to the glorious liberty of the sons 
of God. These are the ordinary means where¬ 
by God rescues sinners from the imminent danger 


126 


of falling' into the pit of everlasting perdition, ft 
is, however, necessary that we should co-operate 
in the accomplishment of these merciful designs of 
God in our favour; for although he has made 
us without our consent, yet he will not save us 
unless to the consent of the will, we unite our own 
sincere endeavours. The sinner then that would 
be saved, must, first, be sorry for, and humbly 
confess his sins; secondly, he must not only desist 
from committing sin, but even from every occa¬ 
sion that may lead to the commission of it; and 
thirdly, he must persevere in the constant prac¬ 
tice of virtue and piety: unless sinners therefore 
immitate the conduct of the Samaritan woman in 
these respects, in vain can they flatter themselves 
with the hopes of salvation. In order to obtain 
the pardon of our sins, it is but just and reasona¬ 
ble that we should humbly confess them. When 
those from whom we have received an offence 
ask for pardon, a id a reconciliation with us, do 
we not expect, that besides an humble acknow¬ 
ledgement of the fault, they would also express a 
sincere sorrow for having offended us.? Can we 
then reasonably expect the forgiveness of our sins 
from God, unless we confess them with a sincere 
sorrow.? and can we be sorry for them, if we be 
not firmly resolved never to commit them.? or 
can such resolutions be sincere, if we do not avoid 
the occasions of sin.? To a true confession there¬ 
fore, some other conditions are requisite besides 
a bare acknowledgement of our sins. The most 
infallible criterion whereby we may prove the 
sincerity of our conversion is, a total change of 
life and manners. We must no longer admire the 
world, nor suffer ourselves to be governed by its 
false maxims. We must quit the paths of pride 
and vanity, and be no longer enslaved by our cri¬ 
minal passions. We must crucify the flesh with 
its concupiscences, and govern ourselves by the 
rules of the gospel. In a word; we must endea¬ 
vour to be able to say with the apostle, / live, 
yet not /, hut Christ liveth in me. (Gal. ii.) By a 


127 


constant perseverance in this happy chancre 
life, we shall correspond with the merciful de¬ 
signs of God, in conferring his grace upon us, 
and entitle ourselves to the promised reward. 

These precautions will secure us against re¬ 
lapsing into sin, a state of all others the most ta 
be dreaded, on account of the extreme hazard 
we run of God’s withdravvinghis grace from us and 
abandoning us for ever. A person who has any va¬ 
lue for his health after having recovered from a dan¬ 
gerous fit of sickness will not be easily persuad¬ 
ed to do that, which might occasion his relapse, 
and terminate in his death. And shall one who has 
any regard for the salvation of his soul, after hav¬ 
ing, through the grace of God, recovered from the 
leprosy of sin, by a wilful relapse, incur the dan¬ 
ger of losing it for ever.? O let us not then re¬ 
ceive the grace of God in vain; but by faithfully 
co-operating with it, secure to ourselves his fa¬ 
vour in this life, as also our eternal happiness in 
the next. 


ASPIRATIONS. 

Most merciful Redeemer! how frequently hast 
thou called upon me, and how long hast thou ex¬ 
pected my return! O suffer me not to remain any 
longer deaf to thy bountiful invitations. 1 desire, 
O my God, to return to thee by repentance, and 
by a sincere conversion to quit those sinful paths 
wherein I have so long wandered from thee the 
fountain of life. This desire, O Lord, is the ef¬ 
fect of thy grace; perfect then I beseech thee 
the work thou hast begun. Grant, O my God, 
that I may not only utterly abhor my past sins, 
but also, by avoiding every occasion of sin for the 
time to come, make it my particular study to ad¬ 
vance daily in the road to perfection, and perse¬ 
vere to the end in thy service. I acknowledge, 
with gratitude, my infinite obligations for the mer¬ 
cies thou hast shewn me, and purpose to make 
the best return of which I am capable. I am 


128 


resolved rather to suffer death, than ever more 
offend thee by sin; and rather than cease to be 
thine, or to love any thing more than thee, let me 
fall into my original state of annihilation. 


SATURDAY 

IN THE THIRD WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, John viii. 1. 

And Jesus went to mount Olivet. 2. And 
early in the morning he came again into the tem¬ 
ple, and all the people came to him, and he sat 
down and taught them. 3. And the Scribes and 
Pharisees bring to him a woman taken in adul¬ 
tery; and they set her in the midst. 4. And said 
to him: Master, this woman was even now taken 
in adultery. 5. Now Moses in the law command¬ 
ed us to stone such a one. But what sayest thou? 
6. And they tempted him, that they might accuse 
him. But Jesus stooping down, wrote with his 
finger on the ground. 7. And when they conti¬ 
nued asking him, he lifted up himself and said to 
them: He that is without sin among you, let him 
first cast a stone at her. 8. And again he stoop¬ 
ed down, and wrote on th6 ground. 9. But they 
hearing this, went out one by one, beginning at 
the eldest: And Jesus alone remained, and the 
woman standing in the midst. 10. Then Jesus 
lifting up himself, said to her: Woman, where 
are they that accused thee ? Hath no man con¬ 
demned thee ? 11. And she said: No man. Lord, 
And Jesus said: Neither will I condemn thee, 
Go, and now sin no more. 

REFLECTIONS. 

Behold the unaccountable perverseness, ob¬ 
stinacy and malice of the Scribes and Pharisees! 
Notwithstanding the many evident undeniable. 


129 


miracles our blessed Saviour had wrought among 
the Jews; notwithstanding his innocent life, his 
heavenly doctrines, and irreproachable conduct, 
still they not only refused to believe in him, but 
sought on all occasions to persecute and revile 
him; to speak evil of him, and traduce him as a 
seducer of the people, and a violater of the law 
of Moses. Desirous to have some specious pre¬ 
text to proceed against him, they brought a wo¬ 
man caught in adultery before him, saying, that 
the law required that she should be stoned to 
death, but desired to know what he thought 
should be done to her. The son of God per¬ 
ceiving the malicious designs of these wicked 
hypocrites, put them to confusicm, by ordering 
him who among them was without sin, to cast the 
first stone. Mortified at this severe but just re¬ 
proach, and unable to stand against the accusa¬ 
tion of their own consciences, they went out of 
the temple, and left the woman alone with our 
Saviour, who bid her depart in peace, and sin no 
more. It is here to be observed, that our bless¬ 
ed Lord in refusing to condemn this woman, did 
not justify her crime, or *declare her guiltless. He 
reproved the pharisees for their malice and 
hypocrisy, whilst by his clemency and goodness 
her wrought her conversion. 

Besides their malicious intent of ensnaring our 
Saviour by this question, the conduct of those 
pretended zealots, shewed them to be void of all 
compassion for the unfortunate offender. They 
exposed her in the temple, and publicly declared 
her crime, which, though it deserved the sen¬ 
tence pronounced by God in the law against sucli 
criminals, yet their own guilt made them very ill 
qualified to become her accusers: for although 
a zeal to suppress vice and immorality, and to 
punish public and scandalous offenders, be not 
only a laudable, but an incumbent duty on those 
to whom the execution of the laws are commit¬ 
ted, yet it is generally expected that themselves 
should not give any cause of suspicion of being 


130 


§:iulty of the vices they condemn in the persons 
of others. A drunkard, a blasphemer, or one 
who frequents forbidden places, is a very impro¬ 
per person to accuse, correct, or punish olliers for 
drunkenness, swearing, or debauchery. 

We may further learn from the answer of Christ 
to the pharisees, to be as favourable to the faults 
of our neighbour, as is consistent with justice and 
truth. Our zeal for his correction must be al¬ 
ways directed by charity, which will teach us to 
cover his failings, and not expose them to the 
W'orld. But should they be of a nature too pub¬ 
lic and notorious to be concealed, yet let the spirit 
of charity make us lessen and extenuate them as 
much as possible, since we are ignorant, how far 
chance, inadvertency, sudden surprise, or w eak- 
ness, may have been the occasion of his fall. 
Even the crimes of public and notorious sinners, 
ought not to be exaggerated or made w-orse than 
they really are, nor exposed, till duty to the com¬ 
munity calls for a just and public animadversion, 
which must be always accompanied with pity 
and compassion for the person of the offender. 
He that is without sin among you^ let him first cast 
Cl stone at /ier,(John viii.) said the meek and mer¬ 
ciful Jesus to the pretendedly zealous pharisees. 
When w^e are innocent of a crime of w hich 
we see another guilty, we may then exercise 
our charity in reprehending him, and our chari¬ 
table reproofs and corrections may perhaps be 
successful; but if we are equally guilty, with what 
face can we reprove, judge, and condemn him.^ 
He w ill have too much reason to reply to all we 
say. Physician cure thyself. (Luke ii.) Thou who 
teachest another., teachest not thyself: who prcachest 
not to steal, and stealest: who sayest men micst 
not commit adultery, yet commitest it, (Rom. ii.) 
There is but little good to be expected from the 
reprehensions, or admonitions of such persons, 
since t he judgment they pass upon others, is'a just 
condemnation of themselves, which involves them 
in the guilt und punishment of the Pharisees, w^ho 


131 


upon our Saviour’s reply, went out of the temple 
one by one, and left the woman with Christ and 
his disciples, who would not condemn her, but 
bid her go and sin no more. This goodness and 
mercy of our blessed Redeemer had so happy an 
effect on the adulteress, that, according to the 
opinion of the holy fathers and commentators, she 
was thereby sincerely converted. Such conde¬ 
scension on our parts may produce a similar 
effect; and a seasonable mercy has often reclaim¬ 
ed those, on whom rigour and severity could 
never operate. 

Another useful instruction may be drawn from 
this gospel, that into whatever grievous sins we 
may behold others fall, we must not therefore de¬ 
spise them, or be elated ourselves. Such per¬ 
sons require our pity and our prayers, and from 
their misfortunes we ought to learn to take care 
that we do not fall into greater crimes; and that 
if we do not, it is not owing to ourselves, but to 
the grace of God, which can easily convert them, 
and from grievous sinners make them greater 
saints, like Saint Mary Magdalen. Whilst on the 
other hand, those who now seem to bid fair for 
that character, may by pride, and too great a con¬ 
fidence in themselves, become great sinners. Ju¬ 
das from an apostle became an apostate, and be¬ 
trayed his Master. From the moment we think 
ourselves secure, we may date the commence¬ 
ment of our fall. We can find no security but in 
the grace of God, for which we must daily pray, 
saying, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us 
from evil (Matt, vi.) We must carefully improve 
and faithfully co-operate with the grace of God, 
that by good works we may make our calling and 
election sure, (2 Pet. i. 10.) 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O ! compassionate Saviour of sinners, who 
wouldst not condemn the woman caught in adul¬ 
tery, but didst bid her depart and sin no more., 


132 


have the same mercy and compassion on me. Ah! 
do not condemn me, dear Lord, though I am a 
grievous sinner. May thy grace work a thorough 
change in my heart, and may I never more offend 
thee. But whilst I thus implore thy mercy and 
clemency for myself, let me be merciful to my 
neighbour. Inspire me with a tender pity and 
compassion for him, that I may put a charitable 
construction upon his failings, and have a sincere 
and compassionate zeal for the good of his soul, 
whereby I may endeavour to reclaim him from 
sin, by tenderness to his person, and pity for his 
weakness. Inspire me also, O Lord, with an 
humble diffidence in my own strength, that I may 
never trust to myself, but place my whole confi¬ 
dence in thee. May thy grace preserve me from 
falling; and if through weakness I should fall, do 
thou mercifully raise me again, that I may learn 
to walk more carefully hereafter. 

Alas! my God, I am convinced that of myself, 
I am nothing but misery and weakness, continual¬ 
ly relapsing into the same follies of which I so 
often repent and accuse myself Have pity on 
me, O merciful Saviour of the world, thou only 
true physician of my sick and wounded soul! 
speak but the word, Lord, and I shall be healed. 
Say to me: Go in peace; and O may I never 
more wilfully offend thee. Let thy powerful 
grace preserve me from all occasions of sin for 
the future; that thou mayest be glorified in thy 
mercy, and that I may live only to love and serve 
thee. Amen, sweet Jesus, Amen. 


FOURTH SUNDAY IN LENT. 

The Gospel^ John vi. 1. 

After this Jesus went over the sea of Galilee, 
which is that of Tiberias. 2. And a great mul¬ 
titude followed him, because they saw the mira- 


133 


cles which he did on them that they were diseased. 
3. And Jesus went up into a mountain, and there 
he sat with his disciples. 4. Now the pasch, 
the festival day of tlie Jews was near at hand. 5. 
A\^hen Jesus therefore had lifted up his eyes, and 
seen that a very great multitude cometh to him, 
he said to Philip: Whence shall we buy bread 
that these may eat.^* 6. And this he said to try 
him: for he himself knew what he would do. 7. 
Philip answered him: Two hundred penny-worth 
of bread is not sutficient for them, that every one 
may take a little. 8. One of his disciples, An¬ 
drew, the brother of Simon Peter, saith to him: 
9. There is a boy here that hath five barley loaves 
and two fishes; but what are these among so 
many.'* 10. Then Jesus said: Make the men sit 
down. Now there was much grass in the place. 
So the men sat down, in number about five thou¬ 
sand. 11. And Jesus took the loaves: and when 
he had given thanks, he distributed to them that 
were set down. In like manner also of the fishes 
as much as they would. 12. And when they were 
filled, he said to his disciples: Gather up the 
fragments that remain, lest they be lost. 13. 
So they gathered them up, and filled twelve bas¬ 
kets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, 
which remained over and above to them that had 
eaten. 14. Then those men, when they Iiad 
seen what a miracle Jesus had done, said: This 
is of a truth the propliet, that is to come into 
the world. 15. When Jesus therefore perceived, 
that they would come to take him by force, and 
make him king, he fled again into the mountain 
himself alone. 


REFLECTIONS. 

The miracles of our blessed Saviour are no 
less instructive than surprising; for, whilst they 
attract our admiration, they afford us most 
useful information. Such is the miracle recorded 
in this day’s gospel. Considering the tender coin- 
7 


134 


passion shewn by Jesus Christ to the multitude 
who followed him, and his jjenerous bounty in 
supplying their necessities, w’^e may behold the 
wonderful effect of his providence over his crea¬ 
tures, and from thence learn to put our trust and 
confidence in him. If we are astonished at the 
miracle which the Son of God wrought in feed¬ 
ing five thousand men, wdth five barley loaves, 
and two fishes, we have no less reason to admire 
and adore his goodness, in supporting the whole 
universe. His providence not only extends itself 
to created nature in general, but to every part in 
particular. Every individual is the object of 
his care, which he displays even in the minutest 
circumstances of life. 

God, who is essentially good, and who, through 
the effect of his goodness, has created us, never 
ceases to take care of us, as we stand in daily 
need of his assistance and protection. Did he 
but abandon us for a moment, we should instantly 
drop into our original nothing; therefore with a 
vigilant eye he is continually on the watch for 
our preservation. Nor can this be doubted, when 
we consider his anxiety for the preservation of 
even the most inconsiderable part of the creation. 
The grass, and the diversity of flowers which 
adorn the face of nature, and grow by order of 
his providence, are decked with more native 
beauty than Solomon ever possessed amidst all 
his splendour and magnificence. (JMatt. vi.) The 
birds of the air are fed by his bountiful hand; 
and, if even a single sparrow cannot fall to the 
ground without his permission, shall man, the 
most noble of all created beings, made after his 
otvn image and likeness, be supposed to be aban¬ 
doned by him? Ah! ought not this consideration 
alone be sufficient to induce us to rely on the pro¬ 
vidence of God? and must it not, therefore, be 
the most irreconcilable of all paradoxes to be¬ 
hold man only, among all other creatures, ques¬ 
tion the goodness of his Creator ? 


135 


The care which God takes to preserve that 
being he has given us, ought to be a sufficient 
reason to excite our confidence in liis protection. 
Let us then place all our hopes in him, who nei¬ 
ther can, nor will deceive us. Whatever we 
trust to in this world, whether friends, riches, or 
any thing else, are at best but weak and uncertain 
Iielps, that often deceive us when we most rely 
upon them, or have the greatest need of their as¬ 
sistance. 

But if we have every reason to rely on the pro¬ 
vidence of God, on account of his infinite good¬ 
ness manifested in our preservation, so we are 
obliged humbly to revere and adore the secret de¬ 
crees of his infinite wisdom in our regard, parti¬ 
cularly in time of persecution, poverty, or sick¬ 
ness. How often do we behold the most inno¬ 
cent, upright, and meritorious characters, aban¬ 
doned to the violent rage and unjust persecution 
of wicked men; that by means, so apparently 
opposite and contradictory, the secret designs of 
providence in their favour may be accomplished. 
Of this we have an illustrious example in the per¬ 
son of the patriarch Joseph^ who was sold as a 
slave to some foreign merchants, and carried into 
Egypt, (Genem xxxix.) where, after having re¬ 
mained in captivity for some years, upon the false 
accusation of his mistress, he was flung into pri¬ 
son among the most criminal malefactors. When 
we consider him in this situation, unable to help 
himself, or vindicate his innocence, could we 
imagine that he would afterwards be raised to 
such high honours and dignities; and yet we be¬ 
hold his slavery and imprisonment to be the very 
steps whereby he ascended to the second degree 
of power and grandeur in Egypt So, whilst op¬ 
pressed by the hardships of vvant and poverty, 
or suffering under a long and painful infirmity, we 
must not ask of God the reason why we are poor, 
or why we are sick; but rest satisfied that it is 
agreeable to the will of God, and through the 
dispensations of his providence. He has call- 


136 


ed the poor blessed, and designed for them 
eternal riches. Though poor in this world, 
if we come to be rich in the next, we 
shall have no reason to complain of our lot. 
In all our troubles and misfortunes, or under 
whatever afflictions we may labour, God will be 
our support and our reward. If we place our 
trust in him, he will either deliver us from our 
sufferings, or enable us to support them. He will 
also be our recompense, if, in submission to his 
adorable will, we suffer with patience and con¬ 
stancy. 

Nor is the power of God, whereby he mani¬ 
fests the designs of his providence in our regard, 
less apparent than his goodness and wisdom. He 
is, of himself, the self existent, sovereign, inde¬ 
pendent being, the great Architect of the uni¬ 
verse, who brought all things out of nothing into 
existence by the efficacy of the single word Fiat. 
We, on the contrary, are his creatures, depend¬ 
ent, not only on him, but upon each other. Now 
the design of God in this mutual dependence is 
apparent from the necessity in which every indi¬ 
vidual stands of the aid of another, that thereby 
each might contribute to the welfare of the great 
body of which he is a member. Hence that pro¬ 
vident variety of different ranks in society: some 
rich; some poor: some placed in a higher, and 
others in a lower sphere of life, requiring the as¬ 
sistance of each other. Some placed in authori¬ 
ty, to command; others in a state of subjection, 
to obey. It is this wise economy that keeps the 
whole world in order, and prevents that anarchy 
and confusion, which otherwise would be the ne¬ 
cessary consequence of all being on an equal le¬ 
vel. The poor stand in need of the rich, for em¬ 
ployment, help, and assistance; and the wants 
of the rich are supplied by the work and labour 
of the poor. Thus, whilst there exists this mu¬ 
tual dependence between them, no one should 
envy, scorn, or despise another. The poor must 
not envy the rich; nor the rich despise the poor. 


137 


Those who are rich must imitate their divine 
Master, and say: Misereor super turbam; I have 
compassion on the multitude, (Mark viii.) and 
consequently relieve them in their necessities, 
and be the instruments in the hands of that pro¬ 
vidence which extends itself over the poor, as 
well as the rich. Thus shall we answer the de¬ 
signs of God, and fulfil our several obligations. 
In a word, as we believe a providence, let us re¬ 
ly upon it, and put our whole trust in God, not in 
the things of this world. Let us adore his se¬ 
cret decrees, and submit to his conduct. Let us 
concur, as we ought, in his designs upon earth, 
that we may merit the reward wherewith he has 
promised to recompense us in heaven. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O great Creator, and preserver of the uni¬ 
verse ! How wonderful art thou in the all wise 
dispensations of thy providence! Prostrate in thy 
presence I humbly adore thee, and with all sub¬ 
mission resign myself to thy will through all the 
circumstances and occurrences of life. I reject 
all superfluous care, and solicitude for the things 
of this world. I know that thou wilt not aban¬ 
don those who place their trust in thee. Thou 
hast engaged thy word to supply our necessities, 
and to grant us what is necessary: nor can I have a 
better security than thy promise, which can never 
fail. On thee therefore will I altogether rely. I 
adore thee in all thy secrets; submit myself to 
thy conduct, and will endeavour as much as pos¬ 
sible, to concur in all thy designs. O may I 
never have any other rule for the direction of 
my actions, than thy blessed will. May my 
whole happiness be placed therein, and may all 
my wishes and desires ever terminate in this di¬ 
vine petition, Thy holy will be done on earth as it 
is in heaven. 

How bountiful and admirable, O divine Jesus! 
is thy goodness towards those that love thee! 


138 


Ah, dearest Lord! what is there in the whole 
world that can be compared to thee ? How un¬ 
pleasing are all sublunary things to a soul who 
placeth its hopes in thee alone. Thy mercies are 
infinite, and thy goodness knows no bounds. Suf¬ 
fer me not then to love any thing besides thyself, 
nor fix my afiections, upon the goods of this 
world, which are too poor, mean, and incapable 
to render me content and happy. In vain do I 
seek for happiness out of thee, or hope to fill the 
desires of my heart, which was only created for 
thee. Without thee all things are to me as no¬ 
thing, for thou only art the worthy object of my 
love, nor will I desire any thing but thee, O 
sweetest Jesus! my God and my all. 

MONDAY 

IN THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, John ii. 13. 

And the pasch of the Jews was at hand, and 
Jesus went up to Jerusalem: 14. And he found 
in the temple them that sold oxen and sheep and 
doves, and the changers of money sitting: 15. And 
when he had made as it were a scourge of little 
cords, he drove them all out of the temple, the 
sheep also and the oxen, and he poured out the 
changers’ money, and the tables he overthrew. 16. 
And he said to them that sold doves: Take these 
things hence, and make not the house of my Fa¬ 
ther, a house of traffic. 17. And his disciples 
remembered that it was written: The zeal of thy 
house hath eaten me up. 18. Then the Jews an¬ 
swered, and said to him: What sign dost thou 
shew us, seeing thou dost these things. 19. Je¬ 
sus answered, and said to them: Destroy this 
temple, and in three days I will raise it up. 20. 
The Jews then said: Six and forty years was 
this temple in building, and wilt thou raise it up 
in three days.^* 21. But he spoke of the temple of 
his body. 22. When, therefore, he was risen 


139 


again from the dead, his disciples remembered 
that he had said this, and they believed tlie scrip¬ 
ture, and the word that Jesus had said. 23. 
Now when he was at Jerusalem, at the pasch, 
upon the festival day, many believed in his name, 
seeing his miracles which he did. 24. But Jesus 
did not trust himself to them, because he knew all 
men. 25. And because he needed not that any 
should give testimony of man: for he knew what 
was in man. 


REFLECTIONS. 

The substance of this gospel is ilie same that 
was read on Tuesday in the first week of Lent; 
it informs us, that our blessed Lord drove the 
buyers and sellers out of the temple. In the re¬ 
flections then made, we took occasion to censure 
the irreverent behaviour of many Christians in 
our churches, who by profaning those sacred 
places, convert the temple of the living God into 
a den of thieves, by depriving him of that honour 
which is peculiarly his. But in our reflections 
on this gospel, we shall take the profanation of 
another kind of temple into consideration, viz. 
our bodies, the temples of the Holy Ghost, (1 Cor. 
vi.) which we too frequently profane by sin, and 
basely convert into places of worldly traffic and 
commerce, more especially since this exposition 
is conformable to that of our Saviour, when he 
called his body a temple. Every Christian then 
is the temple of God, wherein he resides by grace. 
Their hearts are so many altars, on which the fire 
of divine charity ought incessantly to burn, and 
whereon all their inordinate passions should be 
consumed in a continual sacrifice: these mystical 
temples are therefore no less houses of prayer, 
than churches: the latter being a figure and re¬ 
presentation of the former. If then the profana¬ 
tion of the material temple, by an unworthy traffic 
and commerce, was so great a crime in the Jews, 
as to excite the indignation of the meek and mer- 


140 


ciful Jesus, we have no reason to douht, hut the 
profanation of the spirityal temples of Christians^ 
is much more criminal, and that God will drive 
all such as are guilty thereof, from his temple, the, 
heavenly Jerusalem, into which no unclean thing 
shall ever enter. 

As the inspired Apostle calls our bodies tem¬ 
ples of the Holy Ghost, so the Holy Spirit posi¬ 
tively declares, that he will not dwell in a body 
subject to sin^ (Wisd. 1.) If Christians make this 
the subject of their serious consideration, it would 
prevent many of those abuses which so frequent¬ 
ly exposes our holy religion to shame and scan¬ 
dal; some of these I shall notice, that as Lent is a 
time set apart for the purifying those mystical 
temples from all abuses and profanations, we may, 
if we have by sin unhappily driven the holy Spi¬ 
rit from us, by a sincere repentance and amende 
ment., invite him to return again. 

Among the scandalous profanations of these 
spiritual temples, impurity may be placed in the 
first rank, as a sin the most odious, and detestable 
of all others in the sight of God, who being es¬ 
sentially holiness and purity, must necessarily 
hold it in the utmost detestation, since he has by 
so many dreadful examples, shewn his indigna¬ 
tion against it. Alas! how many thousands, after 
having been redeemed by the blood of Jesus, are 
now burning in hell for their impurities.^ There 
are several degrees of this sin, but the smallest is 
such a profanation as is sufficient to expel the 
holy spirit from us. If a lustful thought consent¬ 
ed to—a polution voluntarily committed—an un¬ 
chaste desire conceived—be sufficient to turn 
those mystical houses of God into dens of thieves, 
what can be said of those, who give themselves 
up to a habit of impurity—whose thoughts are 
continually ruminating upon, and eyes are search¬ 
ing after forbidden objects—whose entertainments 
consist in immodest songs and books, and whose 
conversations are replete with words of a double 
meaning.^ What can be said of those, who abaa- 


141 


don themselves to the criminal act, and blush not 
to live in a downright open practice of debauch- 
chery? Alas! the vain excuse of human frailty, 
will serve as no plea, to exempt them from suf¬ 
fering under the severest effects of the wrath and 
indignation of God; and the criminal passions they 
here indulge, will serve as fuel to feed those eter¬ 
nal flames of hell, wherewith they shall be tor¬ 
mented hereafter. 

These mystical temples are also often profaned 
by the passions of anger, hatred, malice, and envy: 
the moment we give way to these sins, the Holy 
Ghost no longer remains in us. As he is a spirit 
of love, charity, and peace, we ought to give 
daily proofs of his dwelling in our hearts, by the 
practice of these Christian virtues. But to behold 
a Christian transported with choler, uttering im¬ 
precations against his neighbour, seeking occa¬ 
sions of revenge, refusing to pardon the least in¬ 
jury, speaking ill of his neighbour, repining at 
the good fortune of another, and never content, but 
continually murmuring at his own lot, is so mani¬ 
fest a violation of the temple of God, that we may 
safely venture to affirm the Holy Ghost does not 
reside therein, and that such as abuse the house of 
God, shall be cast out of his heavenly mansions. 
Since these passions then, fill the world with so 
much animosity, and hell with innumerable souls, 
shall we think them of little or no consequence.^ 
Ah, let us not thus unhappily deceive ourselves! 

There is another manner of profaning the tem¬ 
ple of God, and changing it into a den of thieves, 
by an inordinate desire, solicitude, and anxiety to 
procure the things of this world, whilst we neglect 
the means to obtain the om thing necessary—thesaU 
ration of our souls. From the absence of serious 
reflection, this evil is almost universal. Those 
who are neither enslaved by impurity, anger, pas¬ 
sion, or any other open and criminal disorder, do 
nevertheless violate his holy place by a criminal 
neglect of God and their own salvation, as well 


1 * 


U2 


as by an inordinate attachment to the riches, gl’an- 
deur, and enjoyments of this world. 

Ah! is not this unbecoming the character of a 
Christian ? Is it not degenerating from the dignity 
of being sons of God, and becoming slaves to the 
world, his enemy? Is it not turning his house 
into a place of traffic, wherein w^e make the 
wretched bargain of exchanging heaven for earth, 
bartering the happiness of an eternal kingdom, for 
the uncertain and transitory pleasures of a few 
moments, (for such is time compared to eternity;) 
so that our interest, no less than our duty, should 
oblige us not to be so egregiously imposed on, 
nor thus profane the temples of God. Thus every 
sin may be said to be the abomination of desola^ 
tion standing in the holy place, and a sign of im¬ 
pending ruin, unless prevented by repentance and 
amendment. To this we are called at this holy 
season, and if we refuse to comply, we shall cer¬ 
tainly regret our folly when it is too late to apply 
the remedy for reconciliation. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O God of infinite purity and holiness, thou hast 
consecrated my heart as a temple wherein thou 
delightest to reside. Let me never profane thy 
holy sanctuary by impure or unlawful desires, 
nor expel thee from it by inordinate passions. 
Ah, my God! shall I ever be so unfortunate as to 
barter the happiness of enjoying thee for any thing 
this world can produce. Far be such a thought 
from me; as the most precious treasure in the 
universe, cannot be put in competition with thee. 
All my endeavours then shall be to please thee. 
I will be careful to preserve the temple of my 
heart pure and undefiled. I will cast out from 
thence all inordinate affections, and whatever is 
displeasing to thee. O may it be cleansed by thy 
holy grace from the sordid love of creatures, that 
thou mayest delight to make it thy dwelling-place. 


143 


O divine Spirit of purity and holiness! who 
hast declared thou wilt not dwell in a body subject 
to sin, and hast consecrated my body and soul as a 
living temple to thee, come, and take up thy resi¬ 
dence, and purify me by thy grace. O may I never 
profane it by the worship of the idols of a sinful tind 
worldly love, nor drive thee from it by the tralhc 
of impure and unlawful affections. May the flame 
of a most pure and holy love of thee ever remain 
unextinguished on the altar of my heart. May 
all worldly and inordinate affections be totally 
consumed in my soul, that thou alone mayest reign 
therein. O thou pure and chaste Spouse, let me 
never be unfaithful to thee. May I live and die 
in thee, and renKiin inseparably united to thee for 
all eternity. 


TUESDAY 

IN THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, John, vii. 14. 

Now about the midst of the feast, Jesus went 
up into the temple, and taught. 15. And the Jews 
wondered, saying: How doth this man know let¬ 
ters, having never learned.^ 16. Jesus'answered 
them and said: My doctrine is not mine, but his 
that sent me. 17. If any man will do the will of 
him: he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be 
of God, or whether I speak of myself. 18. He 
that speaketh of himself, seeketh his own glory: 
but he that seeketh the glory of him that sent him, 
he is true and there is no injustice in him. 19. 
Did not Moses give you the law: and yet none of 
you keepeth the law.^ 20. Why seek you to kill 
me.^ The multitude answered and said. Thou 
hast a devil: who seeketh to kill Ihee.^ 21. Jesus 
answered, and said to them: One work I have 
done: and you all wonder: 22. Therefore Moses 
gave you circumcision: (not because it is of 


144 


Moses, but of the fathers,) and on the sabbath- 
day you circumcise a man. 23. If a man receive 
circumcision on the Sabbath-day, that the law of 
Moses may not be broken; are you angry at me 
because I have healed the whole man on the sab- 
bath-day 24. Judge not according to the ap¬ 
pearance, but judge just judgment. 25. Then 
some of them of Jerusalem said: Is not this he 
whom they seek to kill.^ 26. And behold he 
speaketh openly, and they say nothing to him. 
Have the rulers known for a truth that this is the 
Christ27. But we know this man whence he 
is: but when the Christ cometh, no man knoweth 
whence he is. 28. Jesus therefore cried out in 
the temple, teaching and saying: -You both know 
me, and you know whence I am: and I am not 
come of myself; but he that sent me, is true, whom 
3 ^ou know not. 29. I know him: because I am 
from him, and he hath sent me. 30. They sought 
therefore to apprehend him: but no man laid hands 
on him, because his hour was not yet come. 31. 
But of the people many believed in him. 

REFLECTIONS. 

Our blessed Saviour cured a man who had 
been afflicted with a palsy eight and thirty years; 
the Jews, instead of acknowledging the wonder¬ 
ful miracle, and confessing him to be their Mes- 
sias, traduced him as a Sabbath-breaker, and one 
who had violated the law of Moses. As they 
could not call the miracle in question, of which 
the sick man’s taking up his bed and walking, 
was so clear and demonstrative a proof, they gave 
it a malicious turn, by finding fault with its being 
done on the Sabbath-day, and represented him as 
one who had violated the precepts of the law. 
But Christ, with his accustomed mildness, en¬ 
deavoured to correct their malicious inferences, 
by desiring them not to judge according to ap¬ 
pearance, but give a just decision. The advice 
iS no less applicable to Christians than to Jews, 


145 


as it is one of the most prevailing disorders 
amongst the followers of Jesus Christ, to pass 
rash judgments upon their neigbours, and censure 
their actions according to the light wherein they 
behold them. As a remedy for this evil, we 
must attend to the advice of our blessed Lord, 
and judge according to equity and truth; to do 
which, three things are requisite; firsts authority 
to pass sentence; secondly^ a thorough knowledge 
of the case: thirdly, an upright intention, devoid 
of passion, envy, or prejudice: where these con¬ 
ditions are wanting, our judgments will be found 
rash and criminal, like that which the Jews passed 
upon our divine Redeemer. 

Let us apply these terms to ourselves. In the 
first place, we decide without authority, which, 
properly speaking, belongs to God, for he only 
has a right to judge. It is his peculiur preroga¬ 
tive, which we must neither intrude upon, nor 
usurp to ourselves, for this obvious reason, be¬ 
cause we are equally brethren, and the servants 
of one great Master. Hence the great apostle 
says: Who art thou that judgest another man'^s 
servant, (Rom. xiv.) No one then can have any 
jurisdiction over him but God, or the powers es¬ 
tablished by God; for what is here said of our 
not having authority to judge our neighbour, must 
be only understood of private persons with res¬ 
pect to each other, since persons vested with 
public authority, given them by God, whose 
place they hold, may and ought to judge, con¬ 
demn, reprove, and correct the actions of those 
under their jurisdiction. This is necessary for 
the good of society; ag without it, order would 
be lost in anarchy and confusion. 

We are generally not less deficient in a thorough 
knowledge of what we decide upon. This is 
manifest by our frequently judging of the sub¬ 
stance of things by their appearance: but there 
is a considerable difference between the sem¬ 
blance and the reality. When God sent Sam¬ 
uel to elect David in the place of Saul, he 


146 


"bid him not to judge of the sons of Jesse by their 
looks and outward appearance. (1 Kings., xvi.) 
By not observing the same caution, we frequently 
condemn what is praise-worthy, and commend 
what is deserving of censure. Another proof of 
our want of knowledge is, that uncertain rule, 
whereby we judge of our neighbour'*s intention^ 
by his actions. As the motives of one and the 
same action may be very did’erent, so it may be 
done by several persons for different ends, nor 
can any one know the intention of another, but 
God alone, who beholds the secrets of all hearts; 
but if we must judge of the intention, let it be 
always for the best, and then we run no risk; for 
if we should be mistaken, it will prove but an in¬ 
nocent error. A third proof of the want of know¬ 
ledge is, giving judgment upon reports, without 
examination. To proceed thus, is to place our¬ 
selves under the necessity of often judging rashly, 
which is a sure sign of great ignorance, or con¬ 
summate malice. 

A further condition to pass a just sentence, is, 
to judge with an upright intention., devoid of pas¬ 
sion, envy, or prejudice. And alas! how often 
do we fail! how frequently does interest, humour, 
or inclination direct our judgments! The great¬ 
est part of our private opinions are biased by 
inclination or aversion. If we have an esteem 
for another, all he says or does is right: if not, 
all is wrong, and his very virtues are censured as 
faults. If devout, he is styled a hypocrite: if so¬ 
ber and frugal, he is called a covetous miser: if 
generous and liberal, he is termed an extravagant 
prodigal. Being thus incapable of judging as we 
ought, how dare we venture to condemn others, 
since we have no autliority for so doing, and want 
the knowledge and integrity necessary to avoid 
mistakes.? If we must exercise judgment, let us 
cite ourselves to the bar, since we are authorized 
to do so; and having a sufficient knowledge of our 
own sins and imperfections, we stand in no dan¬ 
ger of being unjust to ourselves. This will be for 


147 


oiir advantage; for we are assured by the apostle, 
that if we judge and condemn ourselves now, we 
shall not be judged and condemned hereafter. As 
to our neighbour, if we must judge him, let it be 
always favourably and not rashly. Judge not, 
says Christ, that you may not be judged; for with 
what judgment youjudge^ you shall be judged : and 
%Dith lohat measure you mete, it shall be measured to 
you again, (Matt, vii.) 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O Jesus, the sovereign Judge of Mankind, who 
also hast authority, and dost judge in equity and 
righteousness! preserve me by thy grace from judg¬ 
ing rashly of my neighbour; that giving a favour¬ 
able and charitable construction to his words and 
actions, I may find compassion from thee. I stand 
every moment in need, O Lord, of mercy from 
thee, having so often provoked thy justice. Thy 
pity is what I now humbly pray for, and O let me 
never more presume to usurp thy prerogative, to 
judge and condemn others. Let me rather turn my 
eyes upon myself, to behold my own weakness 
and imperfections, that I may learn to cast the veil 
of charity over those of others. I will leave them 
O Lord to thee, to whom only they are accountable. 
Thou has commanded me to be merciful., as thou 
thyself art merciful: and that I should do unto others 
as I would they should do unto me. Let this be the 
sole rule of my conduct towards my neighbours 
that I may never either injure them, nor offend thee. 

O my God! it is my sincere desire and firm 
purpose ever to observe this excellent rule, and 
follow the example which thou, O merciful Jesus, 
hast left me. I stand in daily need of thy mercy 
and goodness, and shall I be otherwise than mer¬ 
ciful to my neighbourNo, my God! I will en¬ 
deavour to be merciful, as thou, my heavenly 
Father, art merciful. I will think ill of no one, 
but will judge the best and most favourably of 
all. Charity shall direct my thoughts, guide my 


words, and regulate all my actions. Thus, by 
endeavouring to prove myself thy true disciple, 
O Jesus, 1 may conceive a well grounded hope to 
find mercy and acceptance with thee. 

—Q©?©— 

WEDNESDAY 

IN THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, John, ix. 1. 

And Jesus passing by, saw a man that was 
blind from his birth: 2. And his disciples asked 
him: Rabbi, who hath sinned, this man or his 
parents, that he should be born blind.^ 3. Jesus 

answered: Neither hath this man sinned, nor his 
parents; but that the works of God should be 
made manifest in him. 4. I must work the works 
of him that sent me, whilst it is day: the night 
cometh, when no man can work. 5. As long as 
I am in the world, I am the light of the world. 
6. When he said these things, he spat on the 
ground, and made clay of his spittle, and spread 
the clay upon his eyes. 7. And said to him: Go 
wash in the pool of Siloe, which is interpreted 
Sent. He went his way therefore, and washed, 
and he came seeing. 8. The neighbours there¬ 
fore, and they who had seen him before that he 
was a beggar, said: Is not this he that sat and 
beggedSome said: This is he. 9. But others 
said: No, but he is like him. But he said: lam 
he. 10. They said therefore to him: How were 
thy eyes opened? 11. He answered: That man 
that is called Jesus made clay: and anointed my 
eyes, and said to me: Go to the pool of Siloe, and 
wash. And I went, I washed, and I see, 12. 
And they said to him: Where is he? He saith: 
I know not. 13. They bring him that had been 
blind to the Pharisees. 14. Now it was the Sab¬ 
bath, when Jesus made the clay, and opened his 
eyes. 15. Again therefore the Pharisees asked 


149 


him bow he had received his sight: But he said 
to them; He put clay upon my eyes, and [ wash¬ 
ed, and I see. 16. Some therefore of the Phari¬ 
sees said: This man is not of God, who keep- 
etli not the Sabbath. But others said: How can 
a man that is a sinner do such miracles.^ And there 
was a division among them. 17. They say tliere- 
forc to the blind man again; What sayst thou of 
him that hath opened thy eyes.^ And he said: 
He is a Prophet 18. The Jews then did 
not believe concerning him, that he had been 
blind, and had received his sight, until they cal¬ 
led the parents of him who had received his sight. 
19. And asked them, saying: Is this your son 
who you say was born blind How then doth 
he now see.^ 20. His parents answered them, 
and said: We know that this is our son, and that 
he was born blind; 21. But how he now seeth, 
we know not: or who hath opened his eyes, 
W8 know not: ask himself, he is of age, let 
him speak for himself 22. These things 
his parents said, because they feared the Jews 
who had already agreed among themselves, that 
if any man should confess him to be Christ, he 
should be put out of the synagogue. 23. There¬ 
fore did his parents say: He is of age, ask him. 
24. They therefore called the man again that had 
been blind, and said to him: Give glory to God. 
We know that this man is a sinner. 25. He said 
then to them: if he be a sinner, I know not; 
one thing I know, that whereas I was blind, now 
I see. 26. Then they said to him: What did he 
to thee.^ How did he open thy eyes.^* 27. He 
answered them; I have told you already, and 
you have heard: why would you hear it againf 
will you also become his disciples.^ 28. They 
reviled him therefore, and said: Be thou his dis¬ 
ciple: but we are the disciples of Moses. 29. 
We know that God spoke to Moses: but as to 
this man, we know not from whence he is. SO. 
The man answered and said to them: Why, here¬ 
in is a wonderful thing, that ye know not from 


150 


whence he is, and he hath opened my eyes. SI. 
Nov7 we know that God doth not hear sinners; 
but if a man be a server of God, and doth his 
wdl, him he heareth. 32. From the beginning 
of the world, it hath not been heard, that any 
man hath opened the eyes of one born blind. 33. 
Unless this man were of God, he could not do 
any thing. 34. They answered and said to him: 
Thou wast wholly born in sins, and dost tliou 
teach us? And they cast him out. 35. Jesus 
heard that they had cast him out: and when he 
had found him, he said to him: Dost thou believe 
in the Son of God? 36. He answered, and said: 
Who is he, Lord, that I may believe in him? 37. 
And Jesus said to him: Thou hast both seen him; 
and h is he that talketh with thee. 38. And he 
said: I believe, Lord. And falling down he ador¬ 
ed him. 

IlEFIiSCTIONS. 

It is not withovt reason that corporal blind¬ 
ness is considered as one of the greatest misfor¬ 
tunes tnat can befal a man; as a person in that 
melancholy situation is not only unable to help 
himself, but is moreover deprived of the great¬ 
est part of the innocent pleasures and comforts of 
life. But however deserving of compassion a per¬ 
son may appear, the condition of those who arc 
spiritually blind is infinitely worse, and more de¬ 
serving of pity. The number of the former is 
small when compared with that of the latter; for 
without mentioning those who have been spiritu¬ 
ally blind from their birth, by having had the 
misfortune never to come to the knowledge of 
God, and the true faith, we shall find the num¬ 
ber of those to be almost infinite, who notwith¬ 
standing their belief in Jesus Christ, and profes¬ 
sion of the Catholic faith, are yet afflicted with 
spiritual blindness. If it be a work of charity 
to assist those who are corporally blind to reco¬ 
ver their sight, must it not be much more so, to 
endeavour to open the eyes of those who are 


151 


spiritually blind: for which pupose, let us consi¬ 
der tiie causes and effectc of this mental disorder, 
and offer some remedies for its cure, after having 
first compared the blindness of the mind with 
that of the heart. 

There are th^’ee things naturally prejudicial to 
the eyes, which deprive a man of his sight. 
First, Smoke, which by drying up the necessary 
moisture of the optic nerves, weakens their vir¬ 
tue, and gradually takes from him the faculty of 
seeing. Secondly, Fire, which produces the 
same effects, but in a more rapid and sensible 
manner. Thirdly, Dust, which blinds bis eyes. 
Now the darkness of the heart may be ascribed 
to similar causes, for what can honours and digni¬ 
ties be more aptly compared to than smoke, and 
it is for this reason they are styled in scripture, 
vanity of vanities, (Eccles. i.) Like smoke, 
they raise a thick dark cloud, through which 
nothing can be seen, and although they soon eva¬ 
porate and pass away, nevertheless it is a smoke 
of so malignant a nature, as to deprive the mind 
of sight, and cause a spiritual blindness: where¬ 
fore whoever permits his heart to be attached to 
them, will become so blind, as to be unable to 
find bis way to heaven. Ah! would to God, that 
the numbers of such blind Christians were incon¬ 
siderable. But alas! when we behold the gene¬ 
rality of them so excessively fond of parade and 
show,—so much addicted to pride, and high and 
expensive living, we cannot but pronounce them 
blind, and insensible of their sad misfortune. 

But if material fire be a thing which destroys 
corporal sight, there is another kind of fire which 
produces a blindness of the heart; viz. the fire 
of lust and concupiscence. A person addicted to 
pleasure, and a loose way of life; soon becomes 
so spiritually blind, as to be unable to see either 
God or himself. Nor is the effect which is caus¬ 
ed by dust less prejudicial to the eyes of the bo¬ 
dy, than that which blinds the sight of the soul: 
for what is it, but an immoderate desire of riches. 


155 


—the trouble and fatigue of amassing them, and 
an anxiety to preserve them, that renders the 
covetous man blind to every thing else ? He is 
blind to the necessities of the poor; he can neither 
see to relieve their wants, nor even discern how 
to make a right use of his own riches: thus hav¬ 
ing lost the sight of his mind, he vainly imagines 
himself happy in his possessions, whilst he is, of 
all other men, the most miserable. 

Having explored the fatal causes of spiritual 
blindness, let us now consider its deplorable ef¬ 
fects. What can be more deserving our com¬ 
passion, than to behold a man who has lost his 
sight, constantly straying out of his way; fre¬ 
quently falling, and unable to assist himself. So, 
what can be more deplorable than to behold the 
continual errors and mistakes of a sinner spiritu¬ 
ally blind. He knows not whither he is going,— 
where he would go,—or what he would be at. 
He exhausts and fatigues himself by walking 
in rough and craggy ways, which terminate in 
frightful precipices, and fill his soul with a mor¬ 
tal inquietude. Hearken to the elegant descrip¬ 
tion which the wise man gives of their situation: 
We are wearied in the paths of iniquity and per¬ 
dition^ and have walked tn difficult ways, ( Wisd. v.) 
Ah yes, this is the sad state of every blind sinner, 
from which nothing can extricate him but the 
powerful grace of God, which will never be re¬ 
fused him, when he prays for it as he ought. His 
case, though bad, is not altogether desperate. 
He may recover his sight, and be cured of his 
spiritual blindness, if he will but apply the pro¬ 
per remedies, and have recourse to Jesus the true 
physician of souls. 

Let him imitate the conduct of the blind man 
in the gospel, and put himself in the way, by 
which Jesus is to pass. He must be careful not 
to quit this course, or in other words, he must 
remain constant in the profession of the Catholic 
Faith; for if he departs therefrom, there remains 
HO hope for him. As the blind man cried aloud 


153 


to our Saviour to have pity on him, so a sinner 
must cry out aloud by prayer, and beg for mercy 
of God. Christ made clay, with his spittle, of 
the dust, and put it upon the blind man’s eyes; 
from hence we may learn, that the consideration 
of our origin, from the dust of the earth, ought to 
withdraw our hearts from those vanities, which, 
by their dust, blind our sight. The son of God 
commanded the blind man to go and wash in the 
pool of Siloe,by which are understood, the whole¬ 
some waters of penance, in the sacrament of con¬ 
fession, wherein the greatest sinner may wash 
away his sins, and, together with his spiritual 
sight, recover the grace, and favour of God. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

Jesus ! the true and efficient light which enlight¬ 
ens every man that comes into the world! pre¬ 
serve me from all spiritual blindness. Let not 
the smoke of worldly honours prevent me from 
seeing the way wherein I must follow thee, 
through the paths of humility and self-denial. Suf¬ 
fer not the fire of unlawful desires to deprive me 
of my spiritual sight. Thou hast said: Blessed 
are the clean of heart, for they shall see God, 
(Matt. V.) Preserve, then, my heart pure and 
clean, that I may have the happiness to behold 
thee. Let not the sordid dust of earthly riches 
cause me to wander out of the true road, which 
leads to thy heavenly kingdom; or, if I have un¬ 
happily lost my w^ay thitherj may thy holy grace 
recall me. Cause the light of thy Holy Spirit to 
shine upon me, and dissipate all darkness, that I 
may not only see and know thee, O my God! but 
that, also beholding myself, I may have immedi¬ 
ate recourse to thee, the true physician of our 
souls. 

O divine Jesus! the compassionate Redeemer 
of souls, speak but the word and I shall be heal¬ 
ed; touch the eyes of my soul with thy all-power¬ 
ful finger, that I may be delivered from that un- 


154 


Iiappy spiritual darkness under which I have so 
long laboured. To obtain this I will go to the 
pool of Siloe, to the salutary waters of true con¬ 
trition and penance, and w’^ith a sorrowful and 
contrite heart I will cry out: Who will give water 
to my head, and a fountain of tears to my eyes, 
and / will day and night bewail my misery and\ 
wretchedness caused by sin: for, an humble and 
contrite heart, I know, O God, thoti wilt not des¬ 
pise, and recovering my sight in the pardon of 
my sins, I will glorify thy holy name, and remain 
hereafter ever faithful to thee. 


THURSDAY 

IN THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, Luke vii. 11. 

And it came to pass, after this, that he went 
into a city called Naim; and there went with him 
his disciples, and a great multitude. 12. And 
when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold 
a dead man W’as carried out, the only son of his 
mother; and she was a widow: and much people 
of the city was with her. 13. And when the Lord 
saw her, he had compassion on her, and said to 
her: Weep not. 14. And he came near and touch¬ 
ed the bier. And they that carried it stood still, 
and he said; Young man, I say to thee arise. 15. 
And he that was dead, sat up, and began to speak. 
And he delivered him to his mother. 16. And 
there came a fear on them all: and they glorified 
God, saying: A great prophet is risen up amongst 
us: and God hath visited his people. 17. And 
this rumour of him went forth throughout all Ju¬ 
dea, and throughout all the country round about. 

REFLECTIONS. 

That we must die, is a certain and infallible 
truth, confirmed by the experience and the occu- 


155 


lar demonstrations of every day. For however> 
infidels, heretics, and libertines may deny, ridi¬ 
cule, and turn every other article of our holy 
faith into a jest, yet they must agree with us in 
subscribing to this serious truth, that we must all 
die. Ah! yes, our souls must one day be separa¬ 
ted from our bodies; we sliall be taken from all 
we now see and enjoy in this world: but our bo¬ 
dies must be laid in the cold grave, there be de¬ 
voured by worms, and reduced to that original 
dust from which we are formed, whilst our souls 
are carried into a state of endless happiness, or 
eternal misery. This is the lot of the whole hu¬ 
man race, the irrevocable decree passed upon all 
the sons of Adam, from which no one can plead 
an exemption. We may, indeed, for some years, 
cut a figure, and make a bustle in this world. 
We may move about in pomp and splendour, and 
dazzle the eyes of those who behold us, with the 
magnificence of our equipage and retinue; but 
this can only be for the short space of a few years, 
at the expiration of which we shall vanish like 
smoke, and fall into nothing. We may here en¬ 
joy riches and honours, and revel in pleasures 
and delight; but death will at length come, and 
take us from all that appears charming and agree¬ 
able in this world. He will also put a period to 
the misery of the poor and afflicted, and deliver 
them from all the troubles under which they now 
labour, and level them in the dust equally with 
the most happy and prosperous. Death knows 
no distinction, between high and low, rich or 
poor, happy or miserable; he seizes on all alike. 
In a word; old and young of both sexes, and of 
every condition, must own this truth: It is appoint¬ 
ed for all men once to die. (Heb. ix.) 

But if nothing be more certain than death, still 
nothing is more uncertain than the time we must 
die. Perhaps within a few years, months, weeks, 
days, or this very hour. We are continually ex¬ 
posed to death, and know not when he may come. 
How many instances have we of sudden and un- 


156 


foreseen accidents, which have deprived men of 
their lives? Thus whilst there is but one way to 
come into the world, tliere are thousands where¬ 
by we go out of it. A fever kills one, a consump¬ 
tion another, and an apoplexy a third. Many find 
the smallest and most inconsiderable accidents the 
cause of their death. A trifling scratch, a small 
bruise, a slight w^ound neglected at first, increas¬ 
es and proves mortal. Even lingering distempers, 
which aflord time to prepare for death, may be 
truly called sudden, since all diseases have a be¬ 
ginning, and generally seize us when we least 
think of them. Tlie first attack is seldom regard¬ 
ed, in hopes that it will shortly pass away, but, 
continuing, a physician is sent for: who comes, 
and desires the sick man have courage, and, as¬ 
suring him there is no danger, applies his reme¬ 
dies, which how^ever have little or no effect: his 
sickness increases: his strength becomes exhaust¬ 
ed, and at length the patient dies. Is not his death 
sudden and unexpected ? And who can tell how 
soon this may be his own case? Youth, strength, 
or the prime of life are no security. The wi¬ 
dow’s son, whom our Saviour raised from the 
dead, was a young man, in the flower of his age, 
but he died, and would also have been buried, 
had not Jesus met the funeral, and pitying his 
mother’s tears, restored him to life. 

What are the consequences we should draw 
from this reflection? Does it not follow that we 
ought to make a diligent and timely preparation 
for death? This cannot be denied: and yet alas! 
how careless are we, in the performance of so es¬ 
sential a duty. How small are the number of 
those who are solicitous to hear of death! But 
let us seriously consider that if death finds us 
unprepared, we shall be eternally miserable: 
whereas, if by the constant exercise of a pious 
life, we keep ourselves always prepared, death 
will then open to us a secure passage from the 
miseries of this world, to the happiness of the 
next. Nor must we flatter ourselves with mis- 


157 


taken notions of preparing ourselves in our last 
sickness for a death-bed repentance, since no¬ 
thing can be more dangerous than to defer, from 
time to time, our preparation for death. May it 
not justly provoke God to snatch us away sud¬ 
denly, and not allow us a moment of time.!* Has 
not this, alas! been the fatal case of numberless 
procrastinating Christians, who, having put off 
their preparation for death, from this to that 
time, have at length found no time, and been 
eternally lost. To avoid a similar misfortune, 
let us now, whilst we have time and opportunity, 
with the advantages of life and health, seriously 
prepare ourselves for our last end, and remember 
that the best preparation for death is a good life, 
without which we can have but little reason to 
hope for a happy death. This is a matter of 
such great importance, as to demand our most 
attentive consideration. We can only die once, 
and no more. If then, when that time comes, 
we should not be prepared to die as we ought, 
we are eternally lost; but to die once well, will 
secure our happiness for ever. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O my Lord and my God! in whom I live, move, 
and have my being, may I live to thee by dying 
daily to myself and the world. Since I must one 
day die, and be eternally separated from the 
things of this world, how little reason have I to 
be fond of any thing in this life which I cannot 
long enjoy, and of which I know not how soon I 
may be deprived. I must die, but, alas I I know 
not when. How necessary therefore is it, that I 
should not only think of death, but also diligent¬ 
ly prepare for it! O grant therefore that I may 
constantly have my last hour in view, and never 
forfeit thy favour bv sin, nor fall a prey to the 
enemy of my soul. ' I will, O my God! through 
the help of thy grace, use my most serious and 
sincere endeavours to prepare myself to quit this 
8 


158 


world, and die in thy service: to live in thy fear, 
that 1 may expire in thy favour; that when death 
shall close my eyes to this world, I may open 
them to behold the glories of the next, never to 
shut them more. Then shall my happy soul sing 
with joy and triumph: O death ichereis thy sting? 
Ograve where is thy victory: (1 Cor. xv.) for by 
dying, I have gained heaven and a happy eter¬ 
nity. 

And now, my soul! why need we fear death 
A life of virtue, a life spent in the service of God, 
will effectually remove all its terrors, blunt the 
sharpness of its dart, and render it no more than 
a swift, and easy passage to heaven and eternal 
bliss. Thou hast decreed, O God, that all men 
should die, once, and no more; if then I die once 
well, I shall be happy for ever. I humbly adore 
and submit to this thy universal decree. I offer 
up my life as a sacrifice to thee, being ready and 
willing to die this day, or at any other time, 
when, where, and in what manner thou pleasest. 
But whenever, dearest Lord, thou callest me from 
this world, take me to thyself, that in the posses¬ 
sion of thee, I may remain for ever in happiness 
and security. O may I breathe out my soul at 
my last expiring moments, with a perfect con¬ 
formity to thy blessed will. 


FRIDAY 

IN THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospel, John xi. 1. 

Now there was a certain man named Lazarus 
of Bethania, the town of Mary, and of Martha 
her sister. 2. (And Mary was she who anoint¬ 
ed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet 
with her hair: whose brother Lazarus was sick.) 
3. His sisters, therefore, sent to him, saying: 
Lord, behold he whom thou lovest is sick. 4. 


159 


And Jesus hearing it, said to them: This sick¬ 
ness is not unto death, but for the glory of God: 
that the son of God may be glorified by it. 5. 
Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister Mary, 
and Lazarus. 6. When he had heard therefore 
that he was sick, he still remained in the same 
place two days. 7. Then after that he said to 
his disciples: Let us go into Judea again. 8. 
The disciples say to him: Rabbi, the Jews but 
now sought to stone thee; and goest thou thither 
again.^ 9. Jesus answered: Are there not twelve 
hours of the day.^ If a man walk in the day, he 
stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this 
world: 10. But if he walk in the night he stum¬ 
bleth, because the light is not in him. II. 
These Oiings he said: and after that he said to 
them: Lazarus our friend sleepeth: but I go that 
I may awake him out of sleep. 12. His disci¬ 
ples therefore said: Lord, if he sleep he shall do 
well. 13. But Jesus spoke of his death; and 
they thought that he spoke of the repose of sleep. 
14. Then, therefore, Jesus said to them plainly: 
Lazarus is dead; 15. And I am glad for your 
sakes, that I was not there, that you may believe: 
but let us go to him. 16. Then Thomas who is 
called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples: Let 
us also go that we may die with him. .17. So 
Jesus came; and found thm he had been four days 
already in the grave. 18. (Now Bethania was 
near Jerusalem, about fifteen furlongs oft.) 19. 
And many of the Jews were come to Martha and 
Mary to comfort them concerning their brother. 
20. Martha, therefore, as soon as she heard that 
Jesus was come, went to meet him; but Mary 
sat at home. 21. And Martha said to Jesus, 
Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had 
not died: 22. But now also I know that whatso¬ 
ever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee. 
23. Jesus saith to her: Thy brother shall rise 
again. 24. Martha saith to him: I know that he 
shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day. 
25. Jesus said to her: I am the resurrection and 


160 


the life; he that believeth in me, although he be 
dead, shall live: 26. And every one tliat liveth, 
and believeth in me, shall not die for ever. Be- 
lievest thou this.^ 27. She saith to him: Yea, 
Lord, I have believed that thou art Christ the 
Son of the living God, who art come into this 
world. 28. And when he had said these things, 
she went and called her sister Mary secretly, 
saying: the master is come and calleth for thee. 
29. She, as soon as she heard this, riseth quickly 
and cometh to him: 30. For Jesus was not yet 
come into the town: but he was still in that place 
where Martha had met him. 31. The Jews, 
therefore, who were with her in the house, and 
comforted her, when they saw Mary that she 
rose up speedily and went out, followed her, say¬ 
ing: She goeth to the grave, to weep there. 32. 
When Mary therefore was come where Jesus 
was, seeing him, she fell down at his feet, and 
saith to him: Lord if thou hadst been here, my 
brother had not died. 33. When Jesus therefore 
saw her weeping, and the Jews that were come 
with her weeping, he groaned in the spirit, and 
troubled himself. 34. And said: Where have 
you laid him.^ They say to him: Lord, come 
and see. 35. And Jesus wept. 36. The Jews 
therefore said : Behold how he loved him. 37. 
But some of them said: Could not he, that 
opened the eyes of the man born blind, have 
caused that this man should not die.!^ 38. Jesus 
again groaning in himself, cometh to the sepul¬ 
chre: Now it was a cave; and a stone was laid 
over it. 39. Jesus saith: Take away the stone, 
Martha the sister of him that was dead, saith to 
him: Lord, by this time he stinketh, for he is 
now of four days. 40. Jesus saith to her: Did 
not I say to thee, that if thou wilt believe, thou 
shalt see the glory of God.^ 41. They took there¬ 
fore the stone away: and Jesus lifting up his eyes 
said: Father, I give thee thanks that thou hast 
heard me. 42. And I knew that thou hearest me 
always, but because of the people who stand 


161 


about have I said i(: that they may believe that thou 
hast sent me. 43. When he had said these things, he 
cried with a loud voice: Lazarus come forth. 44. 
And presently he that had been dead came forth, 
bound feet and hands with winding-bands, and 
his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus 
said to them: Loose him and let him go. 45. 
Many therefore of the Jews, who were come 
to Mary and Martha, and had seen the things 
that Jesus did, believed in him. 

REFLECTIONS. 

Of all the miracles of our blessed Saviour, we 
find none accompanied with more wonderful or 
particular circumstances than that of his raising La¬ 
zarus from the dead. Our blessed Lord having 
to avoid the fury of the Jews who sought to stone 
him, retired from Jerusalem beyond Jordan, 
Martha and Mary the sisters of Lazarus, sent to 
acquaint him, that he whom he loved was sick; 
meaning their brother. They did not even men¬ 
tion his name, nor desire that Jesus would come 
and heal him. It was enough to let Jesus know, 
that he whom he loved was sick. 

When we have the happiness to be beloved by 
God, we are sure never to be abandoned by him, 
but shall find him at all times ready to come to 
our assistance, Christ loved Mary., and Martha, 
and Lazarus. They frequently received him in¬ 
to their house, and their kind hospitality was re¬ 
compensed by the raising of Lazarus from death 
to life. He was sick; he died, and was buried, 
and had lain in the grave four days; but when 
Jesus said: Lazarus come forth; he arose again 
to life, and lived many years afterwards. In 
our reflections on this subject, two things pre¬ 
sent themselves to our consideration, which may 
be highly beneficial, as they are matters of great 
edification. Whilst the death of Lazarus repre¬ 
sents the condition of a just man, who permits 
himself to be perverted, and, by losing his virtue, 


162 


dies spiritually, so his resurrection is an image of 
the state of a converted sinner, rising from the 
death of sin to the life of grace, in which the 
miracle recorded in the Gospel of this day will 
perfectly instruct us. 

As nothing falls instantaneously, but gradually 
into a state of corruption, so a man does not fall 
suddenly from virtue to vice: for as corporal 
sickness has its beginning, its progress, and its 
end, the same may be said of the spiritual malady 
of one, who falls from a virtuous into a vicious 
course of life. Lazarus was at first ill; this sick¬ 
ness gradually increased till he died; and when 
our Saviour raised him to life, he had lain four 
days in the grave, and began to stink. Behold a 
just figure of one who is perverted from virtue 
to vice. He begins to be careless and negligent 
in his duty, from whence he easily falls into a 
state of tepidity; when the distemper may be 
said to grow stronger, it being extremely difficult 
to recover a lukewarm Christian, because under 
tbe pretext of not being guilty of enormous sins, he 
falsely imagines himself out of that danger, which 
afterwards appears; for, by gradually omitting 
the practice of virtue, vice assumes its place, 
and he becomes quite changed: and thus, the 
grace and favour of God being lost, he becomes 
spiritually dead, and, by the contagion of his 
bad example, he corrupts others. Behold the 
deplorable condition of a just man perverted by 
the spirit of the world: nothing but the powerful 
grace of God {Lazams come forth) can raise him 
from death to life. Ah! yes divine grace is in¬ 
deed able to raise him from death to life, if he 
throws no obstacle in the way. Let us then con¬ 
sider this miraculous conversion, or resurrection 
of a sinner, from the death of sin, to the spiritual 
life of grace: of which the resurrection of La¬ 
zarus is an instructive representation. 

Christ raised Lazarus to life, at the interces¬ 
sion of his sisters Mary and Martha. From 
hence let tis learn to pray for our fallen brethren. 


16S 


There are many sinners whose conversion is ow¬ 
ing to the prayers of their friends; for God is 
frequently pleased to shew them his mercy, 
through the charity of others who pray for them. 
Christ commanded that they should remove the 
stone from the grave of Lazarus, to give us to 
understand, that before we can spiritually rise, 
we must previously remove all obstacles, and im¬ 
pediments on our part. This is not a difficult task, 
since a sincere desire of being converted will as¬ 
sist us. The stone was no sooner removed, but 
Christ said, with a loud voice, Lazarus come 
forth; to teach us that the voice of God speak¬ 
ing by his grace, is absolutely necessary for the 
accomplishment of our spiritual resurrection. 
Lazarus obeyed the voice of our Saviour, and im¬ 
mediately came forth; so we, if we desire to rise 
from the grave of sin, must immediately obey the 
voice of God, attend his call, and not resist the 
motions of his grace; for if we hesitate, or de¬ 
fer our compliance, we may never rise, but remain 
for ever dead in the grave of sin. Lazarus being 
come forth from his grave, our Saviour ordered 
him to be loosed. This last circumstance signi¬ 
fies that God requires a penitent sinner should 
have recourse to his ministers, the priests of the 
church, in order to be loosed from the bands of 
their sins. Christ could, by a word, have made 
the bands fall from Lazarus, but he would have 
his disciples loose and remove them. God by him¬ 
self alone can break the chains of our sins; but 
he will have us address ourselves to those, to 
whom he has given power and authority to free 
us from them, and set us at liberty. Happy! 
thrice happy those, whom our merciful Lord 
thus calls from the grave of sin, and raises to a 
life of grace; of them it may be said, their infir¬ 
mity was not to death, but that the power of 
God’s grace might be manifested in them, by call¬ 
ing them forth to eternal life. 


164 


ASPIRATIONS. 

Since it is thou alone, O my God, that canst 
work this miraculous chang^e of raising me to life, 
when dead in sin, let my soul experience this 
happy efiect of thy goodness, when thou callest 
aloud by thy grace, and sayest to me: Come forth. 
And, O may these powerful words so efiectually 
sound in my ears, as to cause me to rise immedi¬ 
ately. Loose me from all those bands where¬ 
with I feel myself encumbered, and deliver me 
from all obstacles, to obey and follow thee. When 
thou hast thus restored me to life, perfect what 
thou hast begun, and never sutler me to relapse 
into my former criminal habits. Preserve me 
from all coldness, negligence, and indifference; 
and permit not the enemy of my soul to prevail 
again over me. Though 1 have been long dead, and 
begin to putrify, yet thy powerful grace can re¬ 
store me to life, and cleanse me from all corrup¬ 
tion and filth. Then shall my soul magnify the 
wonders of thy mercy, and praise thy holy name. 

Ah! have I not reason to praise thee, O thou 
bountiful Author of Life.^ How often have I ex¬ 
perienced thy goodness and mercy, and shall I be 
so horribly ungrateful as to abuse it, or by a re¬ 
lapse, bring on death againAh, rather let me 
be annihilated, than live here a moment wilful¬ 
ly to offend thee. No, my God; I will endeavour 
to preserve the spiritual life thou hast restored to 
me, by dedicating myself totally to thy love and 
service. I will love thee, O true life and happi¬ 
ness of my soul! I will love thee with my whole 
heart, with my whole mind, and my whole 
strength. As it is in thee I wish to live, and in 
thee I desire to die, I will remain no longer in 
the grave of sloth and tepidity, but will arise 
at thy gracious call, and serve thee with zeal to 
the last moment of my life, that I may live and be 
eternally happy with thee hereafter. 


165 


SATURDAY 

IN THE FOURTH WEEK OF LENT. 

The Gospely John viii. 12. 

And again Jesus spoke to them, saying: I am 
tlie light of the world: he that followeth me, walk- 
eth not in darkness, but shall have the light of life. 
13. The Pharisees therefore said to him: Thou 
givest testimony of thyself: thy testimony is not 
true. 14. Jesus answered, and said to them: 
Although I give testimony of myself, my testi¬ 
mony is true: for I know whence I came, and 
whither I go: but you know not whence I come, 
or whither I go. 15. You judge according to 
the flesh: I judge not any man: 16. And if I do 
judge, my judgment is true, because I am not 
alone: but I and the Father that sent me. 17. 
And in your law it is written, that the testi- 
mon}^ of two men is true. 18. lam one that give 
testimony of myself: and the Father that sent me, 
giveth testimony of me. 19. They said there¬ 
fore to him: Where is thy FatherJesus an¬ 
swered: Neither me do you know, nor my Fa- 
tlier: if you did know me, you would know my 
Father also. 20. These words Jesus spoke in 
the treasury, teaching in the temple: and no man 
laid hands on him, because his hour was not yet 
come. 


REFLECTIONS. 

When our blessed Saviour declared himself to 
be the Light of the world, and that whoever fol¬ 
lowed him walked not in darkness, the Jews ac¬ 
cused him of falsehood, because he bore testi¬ 
mony of himself. But Christ immediately re¬ 
moved the aspersion, by telling them, that though 
his testimony was of himself, yet it was true, be¬ 
ing confirmed by the testimony of his heavenly 
Father, and those many evident miracles which 
8 * 


166 


he wrought, to convince them that he was the 
Son of God, and their promised Messias. If it 
was an inexcusable obstinacy in the Jews not to 
yield to that undeniable conviction, and those 
ocular demonstrations our Saviour gave them, 
what can be said of those Christians who, in the 
practical part of their lives, has too great a re¬ 
semblance to the Jews, who did not acknowledge 
him? That there are many of this class, is but 
too evident, when we take the lives of the gene¬ 
rality of Christians into consideration. 

Christ declares himself to be the Light of the 
world; whoever therefore does not follow him in 
the road of his gospel precepts, most certainly 
walks in the dark. To follow Christ, we must 
walk in the way of humility, self-denial, mortifi¬ 
cation, and penance. This is that strait and nar¬ 
row way which leads to life, and as he himself 
says; there are few who find it. Nor can this be 
wondered at, since so many choose to walk in the 
broad way of pride, ease, and luxury; as nothing 
is so much sought after as vanity and folly, and 
as the fashions of the world are the sole rule of 
their conduct. The followers of Jesus Christ fly 
from the dangerous vanities of the world, and are 
disgusted with every object that may captivate 
their hearts and affections, or have a tendency to 
make them neglect the important affair of salva¬ 
tion, (JUatt. vii.) But, alas! how small is their 
number? The things of this world could not be 
more eagerly, or with greater assiduity sought 
after, than if we were commanded, under the 
most severe penalties, to prefer them before all 
other things. Is it not then evident, that the far 
greater number of Christians, notwithstanding 
their exterior profession, do not follow Christ, 
and of consequence are in the dark, even under 
the meridian light of the gospel. 

To follow Christ, we must walk in the way of 
love and charity, by forgiving injuries, bearing 
with, and assisting each other. But how little 
of this charity do we find among Christians? on 


167 


the contrary, how much hatred, malice, and con¬ 
tention do vve daily behold? Can this be called 
following Christ? Far from it. Is it not rather 
walking in the dark, and following the blind 
guides of our unmortified and irregular passions, 
which will infallibly lead us into the pit of eternal 
perdition. There are others who do not follow 
Christ, by refusing to be directed by those guides 
whom he has placed over them; who take upon 
themselves to be their own directors; who are for 
widening the narrow path, by reconciling the 
fashions of the world to the maxims of the gospel. 
These, by not following Christ, and that light 
which he has set up to direct them, walk in the 
dark, and therefore, by continually stumbling and 
falling, they never arrive at the kingdom of light, 
but lose themselves in the intricate mazes of error 
and iniquity. 

I am the light of the world, says Jesus Christ; 
and it is by his light that every sincere Christian 
walks. He suspects whatever is not conforma¬ 
ble to the doctrine of the gospel; and looks upon 
it as an ignis /afwws, a false light, a deceitful glim¬ 
mering, not to be trusted. Hence, he endeavours 
to regulate himself and his actions by its maxims, 
and does not so much depend upon the character 
or profession of a Christian, as to be careful to 
live like one. This appears by his constant at¬ 
tendance upon the service of God; the care he 
takes to bridle his passions; to live in peace and 
charity with his neighbour, and to do good to 
all men. Happy! thrice happy! the few who, by 
following their divine Master, have learned to des¬ 
pise the world, its empty noise, and pompous 
show! These are they to whom Christ says: 
Fear not, little flock, for it hath pleased the Father 
to give you a kingdom, (Luke xii.) These are 
they who are styled in scripture Children of 
Light; and such we are all invited to become, 
for the apostle, {Ephes. vi.) exhorts us all to cast 
off the works of darkness, and put on the armour 
of light. This the church earnestly recommends 


168 


to us, especially at this time; that disposing” our¬ 
selves for celebrating the sacred mysteries of our 
blessed Lord’s passion and glorious resurrection, 
we may so follow him here, in the narrow path 
of his sufferings, that we may hereafter rise with 
him, and become partakers of his glory. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O sovereign Light of the world! adorable Sa¬ 
viour of mankind! illuminate my soul, and remove 
from thence the darkness of sin. I desire to fol¬ 
low thee, O Jesus! for thou only art the Way, the 
Truth, and the Life. Whilst I walk after thee, 
I need fear no danger; but when I rashly forsake 
thee, I expose myself to certain ruin. If I follow 
the world and its maxims, I walk in the dark, and 
shall be infallibly lost. If I follow my passions 
and corrupt inclinations, whither will those blind 
guides lead me ^ Alas! to a fatal precipice, where 
I must inevitably fall and perish. I will there¬ 
fore be always on my guard against them, and 
adhere closely to thee. I will follow thee, with¬ 
out turning either to the right or left hand. I will 
walk in the narrow path, and strive to enter in at 
the strait gate, that with thee I may enjoy eter¬ 
nal life. For this I beg the assistance of thy grace 
without which, alas! I can do nothing. 

O Jesus, the true light, which enlightens every 
man coming into the world! illuminate my soul 
with thy resplendent rays, that I may perfectly 
see my way to thee. O Life whereby I live, and 
without which I die! may I live by thee, and for 
thee only. O true Life of my soul, all that I wish 
for or desire! my God, and my All! I consider 
every thing without thee as an empty nothing. As 
without thy light all is darkness, how then shall 
1 be able to find my way to thee.!* Enlighten my 
eyes, O God, that I walk not in the shades of death, 
(Psalm xii.) Then shall I behold thy beauty and 
goodness, then shall my heart tend towards thee. 
Thee will 1 follow, and be safe from all dangers,. 


169 


till I happily arrive at the clear vision and enjoy¬ 
ment of thee, in the mansions of everlasting hap¬ 
piness. 


PASSION SUNDAY, 

Is so called from the immediate consideration of the suf¬ 
fering's of our blessed Saviour, to which the church now 
most earnestly invites us. For though the whole Fast of 
l.ent is designed as a preparation duly to commemorate 
the passion and resurrection of our Lord; yet, from tins 
Sunday till Easter Day, the church requires we should turn 
our thoughts, and direct our devotions in a more particular 
manner to the honour and remembrance of Christ’s sacred 
passions and sufferings; and, in order that we might suffer 
something with him and for him, this latter part of Lent 
was formerly observed with greater rigour than the rest. 
St. Epiphanius says,* “ All the faithful were wont to ob¬ 
serve the six days of the Passover as days of Xerophagia^ 
(dried meats. )” And the Apostolic Constitutions! speak 
in the same manner, when they order the faithful to fast 
with bread, salt, herbs, and water only, during the days of 
the Passover. Here it is to be observed that the ancient 
fathers give the name of Pasche to the passion of our Sa¬ 
viour, as well as to his resurrection. The eastern churches 
observe the last W’eek of Lent, beginning from Palm Sun¬ 
day, as the passion time; but in the Latin church, passion 
time begins from the Sunday preceding Palm Sunday, from 
which day till Easter Saturday, the crucifixes and altar- 
pictures are veiled and covered, and the church omits her 
corRmon Doxology, of Gloria Patri^ in the sacrifice of the 
mass, and in some parts of her office to signify to us, that 
it is a time of mourning for the sufferings of our Lord, as 
also for our sins, which w’ere the cause of his passion and 
death. 


The Gospel^ John viii. 46. 

Which of you shall convince me of sin.? If I 
say the truth to you, why do you not believe me.? 
47. He that is of God, heareth the words of God. 
Therefore you hear them not, because you are 
not of God. 48. The Jews therefore answered, 
and said to him: Do we not say w'ell that thou art 

* See Father Thomassin on the Feasts of the Church, 
Lib. 2. C 14. 
f Id. ibid. 5, Lib, C, 17, 



170 


a Samaritan, and hast a devil ? 49. Jesus answer¬ 

ed: I have not a devil; but I honour my Father, 
and you have dishonoured me. 50. But I seek 
not my own glory: there is one that seeketh and 
judgeth. 51. Amen, amen I say to you: if any 
man keep my word, he shall not see death for 
ever. 52. The Jews therefore said: Now we 
know that thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead, 
and the prophets, and , thou sayest: If any man 
keep my word, he shall not taste death for ever. 
53. Art thou greater than our father Abraham, 
who is dead.^ and the prophets are dead. Whom 
dost thou make thyseh? 54. Jesus answered: If 
I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. . It is my 
Father that glorifieth me, of whom you say that 
he is your God. 55. And you have not known 
him: but I know him. And if I should say that I 
know him not, I should be like to you, a liar. 
But I know him: and keep his word. 56. Abra¬ 
ham your father rejoiced that he might see my 
day: he saw it and was glad. 57. The Jews 
then said to him: Thou art not yet fifty years 
old, and hast thou seen Abraham.? 58. Jesus 
said to them: Amen, amen I say to you, before 
Abraham was made, I am. 59. Then they took 
up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, 
and went out of the temple. ^ 

REFLECTIONS. 

O that Christians were so cautious and circum¬ 
spect in their behaviour, so exact in the obser¬ 
vance of their respective duties, as to be able to 
say: Who can convict me of sin? It is certain 
that Christianity engages its professors to at least 
some degree of sanctity: and though we cannot 
pretend to impeccability, like our divine Master, 
nevertheless by endeavouring to follow his ex¬ 
ample, and by regulating our lives according to 
his maxims, whose assisting grace is always at 
hand to help us, we may be able to say: Who is. 
there that can convict me of a voluntary and wil- 


171 


ful transgression of his commands? And though 
we are not by nature impeccable, and since through 
the fall of our first parents, we are prone to sin 
from our youth, and find a law in our members 
fighting against the law of our mind, and holding 
us captives in the law of sin, {Rom. vii.) yet the 
grace of God, through Jesus Christ our Lord, is 
able to deliver us from the bondage of sin, and 
restore us to the glorious liberty of the sons of 
God; which we may preserve for ourselves, by 
doing the will of God: For he that is of Gody 
heareth the word of God, says Jesus Christ, (John 
viii.) and not only heareth but performeth it; 
therefore it is only such that can say; Who can 
convict me of sin ? Hence it evidently follows, 
that the commands of God are not impossible to 
he kept; that the spirit of Christianity consists in 
the observance of them; and that if we do not 
observe them, it is our own fault. These points 
afford an ample scope for our reflections on the 
gospel of this day. 

That the commandments of God are possible 
to be kept, is an article of our faith, and there¬ 
fore not to be questioned by any who call them¬ 
selves Catholics. If it be necessary to observe 
them in order to be saved, it is but reasonable 
that the means of keeping them should be within 
our power. Our blessed Saviour said to the 
lawyer: If thou wilt enter into life^ keep the com- 
mandmentSy (Matt, xix.) but we cannot suppose 
he would have ordered him to observe them, if 
they were impossible to be kept. Our condition 
would be truly miserable indeed, if we were 
obliged to observe what was notin our power! but 
God has not dealt thus with us. He is not a cruel 
tyrant to command impossibilities, under the pain 
of eternal damnation. He is not so hard and 
austere a master, as to expect to reap where he 
has not sown, or to require more than he gave; 
no, he is an indulgent lord—a generous master— 
and a tender parent: his yoke is easy, and his bur¬ 
den light {Matt, xi.) His commands are not 


172 


heavy, much less impossible, (1 John v.) we are 
able, and may, through the assistance of his grace 
observe what he requires of us. It is, besides 
an egregious absurdity, highly injurious to God, 
and unworthy of his justice, to admit rewards and 
punishments in a future state, for those who do 
or do not observe them, and yet suppose it im¬ 
possible to keep the commandments. Ah! far be 
such blasphemous thoughts from us. Let us ac¬ 
knowledge the jjossibility of keepmg them, and be 
convinced that the spirit of Christianity consists 
in the observance of them. 

If the duty of a Christian was comprized in the 
speculative opinions of acknowledging Christ to 
be the Son of God, and believing those sacred 
truths he has revealed; if to talk of virtue were 
sufficient, without the practice of moral goodness; 
then indeed, no one would deny Christianity to 
be a very accommodating religion, and the minis¬ 
ters of the gospel would be at little pains to bring 
Christians to their duty. But to entertain such 
notions is not less injurious to the gospel, than 
prejudicial to those who hold them, because, 
they impugn truth itself, and contradict this posi¬ 
tive assertion of Jesus Christ; JVot every one 
that saith, Lord, Lord, shall enter mto the king¬ 
dom of heaven, but he that doth the will of my Fa¬ 
ther who is in heaven, (Matt, vii.) The will of 
God is, that we live soberly^ justly, and piously in 
this world abstaining from all impiety and worldly 
desires, (Titus ii.) This is the spirit of Christi¬ 
anity—the substance of the commandments which 
we must observe. But if we content ourselves 
with the bare name of Christians: or, if our lives 
are a contradiction to that sacred name, in vain 
do we expect to be numbered among the children 
of God; we shall not only be convicted of sin, 
but also condemned and punished for it. 

St. Peter gives us an excellent advice, when he 
bids us strive by good works to 7 nake our calling 
and election sure, {2 Pet. i.) As we have been 
called to the knowledge of God, and his true 


173 


faith, and chosen into the number of his children, 
it is both our interest and duty to secure this elec¬ 
tion, by perseverance in his service. Then are 
you my disciples and /mends says Christ, if you do 
u'hat I command you^ (John xv.) From hence it 
is evident that Christianity is a practical religion. 
If it instructs us in holy principles, it is wdth the 
intent that they should direct, and have an in¬ 
fluence on our morals; for it will add only to our 
condemnation, to profess the principles of the 
gospel, if our practice be not conformable there¬ 
to. And yet alas! practical piety seems almost 
exploded. Amazing paradox I!!—men talk, read, 
and hear much of religion and piety, and yet 
how few reduce it to practice. It cannot be be¬ 
cause practical piety is impossible. No: the con¬ 
trary has been demonstrated. The profession of 
Christianity supposes it, and it is in it, that the 
essence of Christianity consists. The cause then 
rests in the depravity of the will, in a sad delu¬ 
sion and violent attachment to the things of this 
world. Let us not deceive ourselves, O Chris¬ 
tians ! the commandments of God are not impos¬ 
sible to be kept. It is then no less our interest 
than our duty to observe them. If we do not it is 
our own faults, and we shall justly feel that pun¬ 
ishment which our non-observance of them de¬ 
serves. 

From what has been said, it is evident that we 
ourselves are only to blame if we do not observe 
the commandments; and that, though the lives of 
Christians in general be extremely irregular, and 
not conformable to the sanctity of their profes¬ 
sion, yet some are to be found uncontaminated by 
the almost general corruption of vice, some there 
are, whose lives, by a strict observance of the 
gospel precepts, are bright examples of practical 
piety. These we can, and ought to imitate. 
What they do, maybe done by us: and their strict 
piety is a just reproach to our criminal negligence. 
What we behold done by others, we cannot pre¬ 
tend to be out of our power, since we are equally 


174 


capable, and have the same assistance; for the 
grace of God, which is always the same, is of¬ 
fered to every one. The assistance of the holy 
sacraments are designed for all the faithful; God’s 
holy word is equally preached to all, and all are 
equally told what they must do to obtain eternal 
life. If any thing therefore be wanting, the de¬ 
fect is on our parts, which renders us more inex¬ 
cusable: and if we fail of obtaining eternal happi¬ 
ness, by not observing the commandments, we 
have only ourselves to blame, and shall see our 
folly when it is too late to retrieve it. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O Jesus, thou bright mirror of innocence and 
purity, whom no one can convict of sin; grant me 
the grace to copy after the perfect example thou 
hast set me, that I may never wilfully incur the 
guilt of sin. Dear Redeemer of mankind! 1 de¬ 
sire to transcribe my virtues in my life and con¬ 
versation. I acknowledge thy goodness, in hav¬ 
ing made me a member of thy holy Catholic 
Church, and am ashamed that I have hitherto so 
faintly complied with the duties of my religion. 
O may I be more diligent in co-operating with 
thy grace for the time to come. Jls my faith is 
sound, so let my life be holy, that by an exact obser¬ 
vance of thy commands, I may edify my neigh¬ 
bour, and promote thy honour and glory. Thou 
hast said: he that is of me, heareth my words: I 
desire to belong to thee, and therefore will not 
only hear thee, but in all things obey thee. 

It is thus only, O my divine Master, that I can 
prove myself thy true disciple. Thou hast given 
me a sweet yoke and an easy burden; a law of 
love, which makes all things pleasant; a law which 
is sweeter than honey to the mouth, or music to 
the ears. Upon it will I meditate day and night, 
and it shall be the only rule of my conduct. Thy 
commands, ever sweet and amiable, are designed 
to bring me to the happy enjoyment of thyself, 


175 


O bounteous Lord! in all thou requirest of me, 
thou seekest nothing but my good. Ah! may I 
daily endeavour to correspond with thy gracious 
designs, by an inviolable observance of all thou 
commandest; and, O may I be so happy as to hear 
thee one day address me with this gracious invi¬ 
tation, Well done, good and faithful servant, enter 
into the joy of thy Lord, (Matt, xxv.) 


MONDAY 

IN PASSION WEEK. 

The Gospel, John vii. 32. 

And the Rulers and Pharisees sent ministers 
to apprehend him. 33. Jesus therefore said to 
them: Yet a little while and I am with you: and 
then I go to him that sent me. 34. You shall 
seek me, and shall not tind me: and where I am, 
thither you caiinot come. 35. The Jews there¬ 
fore said among themselves: Whither will he go, 
that we shall not find him.'* will he go to the dis¬ 
persed among the gentiles and teach the gentiles.^ 
36. What is this saying that he hath said: You 
shall seek me, and shall not find me; and where I 
am, you cannot come.** 37. And on the last and great 
day of the festivity, Jesus stood and cried, say¬ 
ing: If any man thirst, let him come to me, and 
drink. 38. He that believeth in me, as the scrip¬ 
ture saith, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living 
water. 39. Now this he said of the Spirit which 
they should receive who believed in him: for as 
yet the Spirit was not given, because Jesus was 
not yet glorified. 


REFLECTIONS. 

W HAT Christ, in this gospel, says to the Jews, 
You shall seek me, and shall not find me, is one 
of those alarming truths which deserves our seri- 


176 


ous consideration; and although it seems a con¬ 
tradiction to what he elsewhere says: Seek and 
you shall find, (Luke xi.) yet a little reflection 
will not only perfectly reconcile them, but also in¬ 
struct us in one of the most important lessons de¬ 
livered in the sacred oracles. Seek and you shall 
find, says Jesus Christ; who being truth itself 
cannot deceive us. No; if we sincerely seek 
him, we shall assuredly find him; and in him we 
shall find all we want or can desire. It must be 
observed, that our blessed Lord spoke these 
words to his beloved disciples, who believed in 
him, and followed him; and in them, to all Chris¬ 
tians who sincerely desire to find him. But when 
he told the Jews they should seek him and not find 
him, he addressed himself to those who declared 
themselves his enemies; who refused to own him 
as their Messias; who openly traduced his doc¬ 
trine, denied his miracles, and calumniated his 
sacred person. To these he declares, that in 
just punishment of their obstinacy and infidelity, 
they should seek him, but not being able to find 
him, they should die in their sins. Christ is easily 
found by every sincere Christian who seeks him 
when he should, and as he ought; but not by a 
sinner who never seeks him as he should, or only 
when it is too late to find him; or when his crimes 
have justly provoked God to withdraw himself 
entirely from him. From hence we may infer, 
that there is a time when God may be found, but 
we will not seek him; or in other words, when he 
would save us, but we will not be saved. There 
may also be a time when we seek him, but shall 
not be able to find him; that is, we shall desire to 
be saved, but not desiring it as we ought, or, only 
when it is too late, God will not save us. Ah! 
should not these terrible truths make sinners trem¬ 
ble! 

There cannot be a greater insult offered to the 
majesty and power of the omnipotent Creator of 
all things, than that man, the work of his hands, 
should refuse to co-operate in the execution of his 


177 


will; can, or ought such a base insult be permit¬ 
ted? Yes: for God having created man, and en¬ 
dued him with reason and free-will^ it follows as 
a necessary consequence, that he should be left 
free as to the good or bad use of both. Now it 
is evident that God desires the salvation of a sin¬ 
ner, but the sinner himself does not sincerely de¬ 
sire it. God continually thinks on us, but we 
seldom think on him. He even condescends to 
request us to accept of salvation; but we, alas! 
refuse the favour. He has done all that is neces¬ 
sary on his part, to procure our salvation, but we 
ourselves will do nothing. 

There is nothing that God desires more sincere¬ 
ly than the salvation of man. Jie is as earnestly 
desirous of it as if it concerned himself Hence 
St. Paul calls the salvation of man the riches of 
tfie glory of God, (Ephes iii) As if to save a 
sinner were a new acquisition to him, he 
demands it of us with all possible tenderness; he 
knocks continually at the gate of our hearts; he 
takes not a first, second, or third denial. He is 
represented in holy scripture as a lover knocking 
at the door of his beloved, calling upon her, and 
conjuring her in the most affectionate terms that 
love can inspire, to open the door and let him in; 
that he may no longer be exposed to the in¬ 
clemency of the weather. Open to me, my sister, 
my love, my dove, because my head is covered with 
dew, (Cant, v.) It is thus Jesus Christ solicits 
sinners by his inspirations, and the motions of his 
grace, by the ministers of his word, and by good 
books. But what return do sinners make? They 
neither hearken to his words nor attend to his 
calls. Their thoughts are occupied with the 
things of this world; they desire nothing but to 
enjoy its riches, honours, and pleasures; hence 
it is manifest that God is desirous of our salva¬ 
tion, and that we neither think of it, nor desire it 
as we ought; or if we sometimes express a de¬ 
sire of being saved, is there any reason to think 


178 

us sincere, when we do nothing to obtain salva¬ 
tion. 

What has not God done to procure for us eter¬ 
nal happiness.^ For this end he became man, 
died on the cross, and established in his holy 
Church those mysteries of grace the holy sacra¬ 
ments; authorising his ministers in his name, to 
absolve penitent sinnners; giving us his sacred 
body and blood for the food and nourishment of 
our souls; olferinghis grace to help and assist us; 
and promising an eternal kingdom as the recom- 
pence of our fidelity and perseverance in his ser¬ 
vice. So that he may truly say to us as he did 
heretofore to the Jews. What could I have done 
more for my vineyard which / have not done 
(Isaias v.) Yes, dearest Lord! thou hast done all 
that could be necessary, on thy part, for our sal¬ 
vation; but alas! we do little or nothing for our¬ 
selves. It is but too evident that all, or at least 
the far greater part of what we do, is done for 
this life; to increase our fortunes, aggrandize our 
families, and wallow in the riches and pleasures 
of this world: for this we labour with unremit¬ 
ting solicitude and unwearied diligence; for this 
we spare neither time nor pains; nay, is it not 
manifest from the course of our lives, that, what¬ 
ever God has done for us, we are unwilling to do 
any thing for him, or rather for ourselves: that 
though he is to be found, yet we will not seek 
him, and though he wishes we should be happy, 
still we do not sincerely desire it ourselves. 

Have we any reason then to be surprised at 
that severe threat denounced by Jesus Christ 
against the Jews: You shall seek me, and you 
shall not find me? Since sinners will not seek 
God, whilst he may be found, nor take any pains 
to secure that salvation which God is so anxious 
to procure for them, there may be a time when 
they will seem to seek him, but shall not be able to 
find him: when they shall desire to be saved, but not 
desiring it as they ought, or when it is too late, 
God will not save them. This awful truth is as- 


179 


serted in holy scripture in such plain terms, that, 
however severe it may seem, it cannot be called 
in question: Because I have called, and you have 
not answered; but have despised my counsel, and 
neglected my admonitions: I also will laugh at 
your ruin, and deride you when that which you 
feared shall come upon you. When a sudden 
calamity shall rush upon you ; when trouble and 
anguish shall seize you; then shall you call upon 
me, and I will not hear: you shall rise in the 
morning, but shall not find me, (Prov. i.) This 
is confirmed by the Son of God speaking to the 
Jews: You shall die in your sins. Ah! deplo¬ 
rable condition of wilful sinners, who only seek 
God when he is not to be found I who defer their 
repentance till their last moments, when they 
can sin no longer, and are obliged to leave all 
their criminal enjoyments, to be separated from 
which, will be the real cause of the trouble and 
sorrow thay shall then express. This is not as¬ 
serted to invalidate the sincerity of a death-bed 
repentance, or to maintain that a sinner cannot 
be truly converted in his last hours; for God has 
mercifully granted that grace to some, and there¬ 
fore none ought to despair; since the conversion 
of a sinner can never be too late when it is sincere; 
hut then it must also be considered, that those 
late conversions are perhaps only apparent, and 
give too much reason to suspect their sincerity. 
Must it not then be the greatest folly and impru¬ 
dence, to commit an affair of such importance to 
the hazard of a death-bed repentance, since those 
who do so, have such just reason to fear that God 
will not then be found by them.^ It is no easy 
matter for those to seek God, as they ought, when 
dying, who have refused to seek him before. 
Alas I if he should then refuse to hear us, we 
shall be eternally miserable. Of this he assures 
us himself; and shall we then presume to run the 
hazard of not seeking him at a time' whilst he 
may be found.? 


180 


Did we consult our interest as well as our duty^ 
we would soon be convinced of the necessity of 
repenting whilst we have leisure and opportunity. 
For now is the acceptable time^ now is the day of 
salvation^ (2 Cor. vi.) Let us then hearken to 
the call of God, and no longer defer our conver¬ 
sion from one time to another, lest at length we 
find no time, but die in our sins, and are lost for 
eternity. 


ASPIRATIONS. 

O God, of infinite goodness and mercy, who 
desirest not the death of a sinner, but rather that 
he be converted and live! How long shall sin¬ 
ners abuse thy bounty, and refuse thy gracious 
invitations.^ O strike their hearts with a whole¬ 
some fear of thy terrible judgments, that before 
it be too late, they may do penance for their 
sins, and be reconciled to thee. Preserve me, 
dear Lord, from the spirit of delusion, and suffer 
me not to be deaf to thy divine calls and holy 
inspirations. May I now seek thee, whilst thou 
art to be found, so as that I may find thee. Let 
not the devil and the world prevail upon me, to 
neglect the great concern of my salvation. If I 
have hitherto unhappily strayed from the true 
way, bring me mercifully back. Open my eyes 
to behold the danger which my sins expose me, 
that I may through the help of thy grace, avoid 
my ruin. As thou hast hitherto waited for my 
conversion, let me not any longer abuse thy in¬ 
comparable patience. I bow down and adore 
thy wonderful goodness, and hope to experience 
its happy effects; and for this end I purpose to 
amend my life, and from this moment to begin to 
love and serve thee. From this instant 1 will be¬ 
gin to seek thee, and having found thee, may I 
never more lose thee, by sin. 

Thou hast said, see/c, and you shall fnd, 
(Matt, vii.) Let me daily seek thee, dear Lord, 
in the way where thou art to be found: the way 


181 


of humility, of self-denial, and an ardent love of thy¬ 
self above all things. Open my eyes that I may walk 
in the light, that light which is thy very self, and 
by which thou guidest souls to thee, that I may 
no more wander in darkness. Open my ears, O 
Lord, that hearing thy sweet and charming voice, 
I may run after thee in the way of thy command¬ 
ments. (Psal. cxviii.) May 1 hearken to thy 
voice, and say: speak Lord for thy servant hear- 
eth., (1 Kings iii.) O speak aloud, that thy voice 
may pierce my ears, touch my heart, and make 
me for ever thy faithful servant. 


TUESDAY 

IN PASSION WEEK 

The Gospel^ John, vii. 1. 

After these things Jesus vvalked in Galilee; 
for he would not walk in Judea: because the 
Jews sought to kill him. 2. Now the Jews’ feast 
of tabernacles was at hand. 3. And his brethren 
said to him: Depart from hence, and go into Ju¬ 
dea; that thy disciples also may see the works 
which thou dost. 4. For there is no man that 
doth any thing in secret, and he himself seeketh 
to be known openly: if thou do those things, 
manifest thyself to the world. 5. For neither 
did his brethreif believe in him. 6. Then Jesus 
said to them: My time is not yet come; but your 
time is always ready. 7 The world cannot hate 
you: but me it bateth; because I give testimony 
of it, that the works thereof are evil. 8. Go 
you up to this festival day, but I go not up to this 
festival day: because my time is not fully comA 
9. When he had said these things he himself staid 
in Galilee. 10. But after his brethren were gone 
up, then he also went up to tJie feast, not openly, 
but as it were in secret. 11. The Jews therefore 
9 


\S2 


sought him on the festival day, and said: Where 
is he? 12. And there was much murmuring 
among the multitude concerning him. For some 
said: He is a good man. And others said: No, 
but he seduceth the people. 13. Yet no man 
spoke openly of him, for fear of the Jews. 

REFLECTIONS. 

The feast of the Tahernacles, of which, men¬ 
tion is made in this gospel, is one of the principal 
solemnities of the Jews, which continues for the 
space of seven days, during which time they are 
obliged to quit their habitations, and dw^ell under 
tents, or arbours made of the boughs of trees, as 
an annual memorial of their forefathers having 
dwelt under tents forty years in the desert; and 
to thank God for having brought them into the 
land of promise. Our blessed Saviour was pre¬ 
sent at this festival, being very exact in ob¬ 
serving all the established solemnities of the Jew¬ 
ish institute, or the law of Moses, then in force, 
and not as yet abrogated. As this feast w as in¬ 
stituted for a memorial to the Jews, of their pas¬ 
sage through the desert, and their having dwelt 
there forty years before they entered the land of 
Canaan; so w^e, from our blessed Lord having 
been present, may draw this useful and moral re¬ 
flection, to look upon ourselves as strangers and 
pilgrims, passing through the desert of this 
w^orld, towards the heavenly Canaan the true 
land of promise, and esteem ourselves as having 
no fixed habitation, according to w hat St. Paul 
says: Here we have not a perr)iane7it cihj, but we 
seek that which is to couw^ (Heb. xiii.) Conse¬ 
quently every Christian ought to hold this w'orld 
in contempt, and conceive an ardent desire to ar¬ 
rive at heaven the place of his destination. This 
is wJiat may be observed in all travellers, w^ho do 
not fix their afiections upon wdiat they behold in 
passing along, but have their thoughts chiefly 


185 

®ccupied about their arriving at their journey’s 
end. 

The principal reason why the Christian travel¬ 
ler ouglit to despise the things of this world is, 
because every thing in it is changeable and tran¬ 
sitory, and nothing durable or lasting. Even the 
world itself, the great theatre of so many changes 
and revolutions, passes away. It grows every 
day older and older, till at length it shall be con¬ 
sumed in a general conflagration; and though we 
are willing to suppose the period of its final des¬ 
truction to be many ages distant, yet it may arrive 
sooner than we imagine, since we know yieither 
the day nor the hour^ (Matt xxv.) God having 
in his infinite wisdom, and for our benefit, kept 
the determinate time of its existence a secret to 
himself, that being on the one hand certain that 
this awful event will take place, and on the other, 
uncertain as to the time of its being accomplish¬ 
ed, we might look on the world with a traveller’s 
eye as a fleeting object, more worthy of our con¬ 
tempt than our esteem. But if the world itself be 
thus transitory, its goods and possessions are 
much more so; and therefore we have little rea¬ 
son to be attached to them. The estates and rich¬ 
es of which we are at present in possession, we 
may, in a very little time, be deprived of. A 
thousand accidents may take them from us, and 
cause a strange revolution in our fortune. How 
many rich, in a little time become miserably 
poor! How many poor, as suddenly grow rich! 
Nothing is more uncertain, or less durable, than 
riches. Are pleasures and diversions more stable 
and lasting.*^ No: the pursuit of them is general¬ 
ly attended with numberless vexations and disap¬ 
pointments, and so fickle are they, that the wise 
man, with a great deal of justice and truth, 
calls them, and every thing else under the sun, 
Vanity of vanities^ (Eccles. i.) We have a con¬ 
firmation of this truth from ourselves; for what 
are our bodies but houses of clay, in danger eve¬ 
ry moment of falling.^ What more uncertain and 


184 


precarious than health, of which sickness maj 
quickly deprive us? and without health, what 
are the enjoyments of the world? From whence 
it appears that we are in this world only as so 
many pilgrims or travellers. Our bodies are as 
so many tents or tabernacles, wherein our souls 
reside during our journey through this life to the 
next, as the Jews dwelt in tents during their pas¬ 
sage through the desert into Canaan. Happy, 
thrice happy those Christians who imbibe these 
sentiments, and feel no attachment to the things of 
this world; who look upon it only as a great inn, 
wherein they may lodge and refresh themselves 
in their journey to heaven, whither they earnest¬ 
ly desire to arrive, that they may enjoy God and 
be happy for ever. This continual desire of ad¬ 
vancing towards heaven, is another part of the 
character of a Christian traveller. Insensible, in 
a great measure, to the things of this world, 
which are more the objects of his dislike than his 
desires, he looks upon them with an eye of indif¬ 
ference and contempt, incessantly sighing after 
the celestial Canaan^ he with a holy impatience 
cries out: Whe7i shall I come, a^id appear in the 
presence of God, (Psal. xli.) Wo is me, that my 
sojourning is prolonged! that I am forced to 
dicell in the tents of Kedar. (Psal. cxix.) These 
are the pious breathings of holy souls, whereby 
they express just ideas both of this and the other 
world. Oh, that they were so deeply rooted in 
our minds, as to have such an influence on our ac¬ 
tions, that our lives might be regulated by them; 
for it is not merely wishing or desiring that will 
bear us thither, any more than they will bring us 
to our journey’s end. We must therefore not on¬ 
ly desire heaven, but also labour to obtain it. It 
is proposed to us as a recompense for our labour; 
so that if we will not work, we have no rigljt to 
expect any wages. When Christ says: If you 
will enter into life, keep the commandments, 
(Matt, xix.) he states the terms on which we 
can hope to gain the w^ages of eternal life. To 


18 o 


our desires then, let us join our best endeavours, 
and stnve by good works to make our calling and 
election sure. (2 Pet. 1.) 

ASPIRATIONS. 

I sincerely desire, O my God! and firmly pur¬ 
pose to serve thee, and keep thy commandments, 
as it is on these terms only, I can hope to obtain 
heaven and eternal happiness. I despise the 
world, and every thing it contains, as unworthy 
my care and attention. I am truly sorry, O my 
God, for not having observed thy commandments, 
and purpose to be mure careful for the future. 
Being here only a passenger, as such I esteem 
myself, fixing my mind and affections on my hea¬ 
venly home. All my desires tend towards thee, 
and all my endeavours shall be to arrive at the en¬ 
joyment of thee, for it is in thee only I can be 
happy, and without thee I shall be eternally mi¬ 
serable. 

Ah, my soul: why do we delay here, and em¬ 
ploy ourselves about empty nothings.? Heaven 
is our home; thither we are bound, and thither let 
us bend our course with all possible speed. What 
can this world be compared to but a wretched 
inn, wherein we are obliged to lodge only for a 
time, for we must not look upon it as our dwell¬ 
ing place. O my God! since thou hast created 
me lor thyself alone, I will seek thee, and thee 
only. Alas! I have hitherto been too negligent. 
I have unprofitably dissipated my time, but let 
me be more diligent for the future. Adieu, vain 
w’orld, I renounce all thou canst give, for I am 
bound to a better place, heaven, where I hope to 
see, and enjoy my God for ever. Courage then, 
O my soul! let us proceed with resolution and 
constancy. Let us so run as to obtain the glori¬ 
ous prize. O my God! it is what I desire, as¬ 
sist me by thy grace that I may happily suc¬ 
ceed. 


186 


WEDNESDAY 

IN PASSION WEEK. 

The Gospel, John x. 22. 

And it was the feast of the dedication at Je¬ 
rusalem: and it was winter. 23. And Jesus 
walked in the temple in Solomon’s porch. 24. 
The Jews therefore came round about him: 
and said to him: How long dost thou hold our 
souls in suspense.? if thou be the Christ, tell us 
plainly. 25. Jesus answered them: I speak 
to you, and you believe not: the works that I do 
in the name of my Father, they give testimony 
of me: 26. But you do not believe, because 
you are not of my sheep. 27. My sheep hear 
my voice: and I know them, and they follow 
me: 28. And I give them eternal life; and they 
shall not perish for ever, and no man shall 
snatch them out of my hand. 29. That which my 
Father hath given me, is greater than all: and no 
one can snatch them out of the hand of my 
Father. 30. I and the Father are one. 31. The 
Jews then took up stones to stone him. 32. Je¬ 
sus answered them: many good works I have 
shewed you from my Father: for which of those 
works do you stone me? 33. The Jews answer¬ 
ed him: For a good work we stone thee not, but 
for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a 
man, makest thyself God. 34. Jesus answered 
them: is it not written in your law: I said, you 
are Gods? 35. If he called them gods, to whom 
the word of God was spoken, and the scrip¬ 
ture cannot be broken: 36. Do you say of him, 
whom the Father hath sanctified and sent into the 
world: Thou blasphemest: because I said, I am 
the Son of God? 37. If I do not the works of 
my Father, believe me not. 38. But if I do: 
though you will not believe me, believe the 
works, that you may know, and believe that the 
Father is in me, and I in the Father. 39, They 


187 

sought therefore to take him; but he escaped out 
of their hands. 


REFLECTIONS. 

If Christ told the Jews they did not believe m 
him, because they were not of his sheep; the same 
may be said of many, who, although they call 
themselves Christians, yet not believing in him 
with a right faith, are not of his fold. My sheep^ 
says Jesus Christ, hear my voice^ and I know them^ 
and they follow me. Whoever therefore does not 
hear the voice of Christ, are not of his flock. 
This assertion, however severe, is nevertheless 
true; and for these reasons assigned by truth it¬ 
self. First, they cannot be called his sheep who 
hear not his voice, nor follow him in the obser¬ 
vance of what he commands, in the practical part 
of the gospel. There are, alas; too many, who 
believe all the truths of the gospel in speculation, 
but condemn them in practice: choosing to walk 
in the ways of sin, they cannot be said to follow 
Christ, and therefore are not of his flock. There 
are others also, who, although they call them¬ 
selves Christians, yet refuse to hear his voice 
when he speaks to them by his church, and there¬ 
by rejecting her authority, separate themselves 
from his sheep, and belong not to his fold. This 
he has sufficiently declared: He who will not hear 
the church., let him be esteemed as a heathen and 
publican, (Matt, xviii.) And, He who despises you, 
the pastors of his church, despises me; and he 
who despises me, despises him that sent me, (Luke 
X.) A plain and positive indication of his will, 
that we should hear the church, and submit to her 
authority. When we shew this submissive and 
respectful docility, in obeying her voice, we give 
the most evident proof that we are of his sheep; 
otherwise, there is every reason to affirm, that we 
do not belong to him. 

Let us consider that nothing is more necessary, 
move just, and more glorious than, through a sub- 


188 


mission of judgment to the church, to hear and 
obey the voice of Jesus Christ. Nothing more 
necessary^ since it is the positive will of God we 
should be under his guidance, otherwise we shall 
find it impossible to direct ourselves, with securi¬ 
ty, in the way of salvation; as without tliis light 
of faith and submission^ we would fall into per¬ 
nicious errors. Had it not been necessary^ Christ 
would never have obliged us to hear the church, 
under the severe penalty of being considered as 
heathens and publicans. For which reason, the 
apostle exhorts us to obey our bishops and pastors, 
who are placed over us to watch for the good of our 
souls, (Heb. xiii.) After so plain a declaration, 
to refuse obedience, is a sign of consummate 
pride, and an unbounded love of liberty to act as 
vve please: qualifications which vvill never entitle 
us to the honour of being numbered among the 
sheep of Christ. When we reflect that nothing 
can be more subject to error than the mind of 
man; when we consider into how many absurd 
and extravagant opinions so many great and 
learned men have fallen, by trusting to their 
own judgment, and refusing to submit to the de¬ 
cisions of the church; when we recall to mind the 
fatal consequences to thousands of souls, in the 
many schisms this refractory spirit has caused in 
tlie church of God, and the heresies it has pro¬ 
duced, we shall then be convinced of the necessity 
of hearing and obeying the church, and acknow¬ 
ledge her for the true and final judge of such con¬ 
troversies, as may arise. This is confirmed from 
the nature of all political bodies, wherein some, 
as heads and rulers, are appointed to govern and 
direct; others as members, to hear and obey. 
Such is the nature of the church; it is a spiritual 
body politic, wherein it is impossible to preserve 
peace and union, or to avoid schisms and divi¬ 
sions, if every one was at liberty to set himself 
up for his own guide, and reject her authority 
over him. Such are not of his sheep. The sheep 
of Christ are all in one fold, preserving the unity 


189 


of spint in the bond of peace^ by following him, • 
and obeying the pastors of the church, especially 
its visible and supreme head. Those who refuse 
this obedience, are no better than wolves in sheep’s 
clothing, whose only aim is to draw unwary 
sheep from Christ’s fold, thereby to devour them. 
The best security against such, is to adhere firm¬ 
ly to the faith once delivered to the saints^ {Jude 
iii.) and not, like children, be blown about by every 
wind of dodW/ie, (Ephes. iv.) 

Nothing can be more just or reasonable than 
this submission; for prudence directs us to adopt 
the safest mode of proceeding in such matters as 
admit a possibility of their not terminating hap¬ 
pily. But by hearing and obeying the church, 
in spiritual matters, we are certain of not running 
any risque; for she neither can, nor will lead us 
into error, since Christ promised that his holy 
Spirit should lead and direct her into all truth, 
(John xvi.) that he himself would remain with her 
to the end of the world, {Matt, xxviii.) and, that 
being built upon a rock, the gates of hell should 
never prevail against her, {Matt. xv\. ’ Hence 
she is called by St. Paul, the pillar and ground of 
truth, (1 Tim iii.) Privileges quite inconsistent 
with the charge exhibited against her of falling 
into damnable errors, or teaching falsehoods for 
truth, and demonstrates the wretched expedients 
to which those are driven who aOirm, in defence 
of their wanton separation, that she has erred, 
or may err in matters of faith. It likewise proves 
the security and safety, togetlier with the peace 
of mind which may be obtained by submitting to 
her authority; whilst those who are separated 
from her are divided amongst themselves, into ten 
thousand discordant opinions, having no certain 
rule to direct tlicm where to fix, but wander on, 
led by the blind guide of private judgment, and 
eventually lose themselves in the endless mazes 
of error. 

But it is not less necessary and just, than glori¬ 
ous for a Christian to submit io the authority of 
9 * 


190 


« the church; as he thereby exercises the most herour 
virtues recommended in the gospel, to whicli the 
most glorious recompense is promised. We ex¬ 
ercise thereby, faith, humility and obedience. 
Faith, in believing what God declares by his 
church: humility, by submitting our judgment to 
hers: and obedience, in complying with what she 
requires of us. These excellent virtues are the 
certain marks whereby they may discover the 
sheep belonging to the fold of Christ. Of such 
he says: Iknoiv them, and theyfolloio me; and I 
give to them life everlasting. O how glorious must 
it be thus to follow Christ, and be known by him! 
From hence we may discover the happiness of 
being members of the Catholic Church, the sheep- 
fold of Jesus Christ. O how great a blessing! if, 
like good sheep, we follow our pastor, hear his 
voice, and obey his commands, by living accord¬ 
ing to the principles of our holy religion, without 
which, faith will not avail us; for faith without 
works are dead, (James ii.) We must not deceive 
ourselves, by thinking it sufficient that we are of 
the number of Christ’s sheep, by being members 
of his church, and have no care how, or in what 
manner, we live, lest wdien we hereafter say: Lord 
Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name, (Matt, 
vii.) the answer may be: / know you not; depart 
from me you workers of iniquity. To a sound 
mid orthodox faith then must be joined a virtuous 
and holy life, as it is not only in regard of princi¬ 
ples, but likewise of our morals, that Christ says 
to us; My sheep hear my voice and follow me. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

Blessed for ever be thy name, O Saviour of 
the world, who hast established thy church, as a 
certain way by wffiich we may come to thee. 
Thou hast founded her upon a rock, and the gates 
of hell shall never prevail against her. We give 
thee thanks for the happiness w'e enjoy, by being 
included in her communion. She is that city set 


191 


upon a hill, which cannot be hid. O draw all na¬ 
tions to her. Bring back all those who are gone 
astray, and have unhappily separated themselves 
from her. Remove all obstacles that prevent 
peace and concord, among thy followers. Grant 
that all the members of thy church may practise 
the faith they profess, and never dishonour it by 
wicked lives; but like good sheep, hear thy voice, 
and follow thee in the observance of thy holy com¬ 
mands, that so they may obtain life everlasting. 

My God! I give thee thanks for the favour thou 
hast done me: in making me a member of thy one^ 
holy Catholic Church. To this favour, dear Lord, 
add one more, that I may never disgrace thy holy 
religion by a wicked or profane life. May I en¬ 
deavour to adorn it by a holy co-operation of 
soul and body. As I have the happiness, O Jesus 
the bishop and shepherd of souls, to be one of 
thy sheep, may I always hear thy voice and fol¬ 
low thee. Let not the voice of strangers sound 
in my ears, nor seduce me from thee, nor from 
the society of the faithful members of thy mysti¬ 
cal body. In the faith and communion of thy holy 
Catholic Church I desire to live and die ; for this 
holy faith let me be always ready and willing, by 
thy grace, to lay down my life and lose all that I 
have. Amen. Amen. 


THURSDAY 

IN PASSION WEEK. 

The Gospel., Luke vii. 36. 

And one of the Pharisees desired him to eat 
with him. And he went into the house of the 
Pharisee, and sat down to meat. 37 And behold 
a woman in the city, that was a sinner, when she 
knew that he sat at meat in the Pharisee’s house, 
brought an alabaster box of ointment: 38. And 
standing behind at his feet, she began to wash his 


feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs 
of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed 
them with the ointment. 39. And the Pharisee, 
who liad invited him, seeing’ it, spoke within him¬ 
self, saying: This man, if he were a prophet, 
would know surely, who and what manner of 
woman this is that toucheth him, that she is a sin¬ 
ner, 40. And Jesus answering, said to him: Si¬ 
mon, I have somewhat to say to thee. But he 
said; Master, say it. 41. A certain creditor had 
two debtors, the one owed five hundred pence, 
and the other fifty. 42. And whereas they had 
not wherewith to pay, he forgave them both. 
Which therefore of the two loveth him most.^ 43. 
Simon answering, said: I suppose that he to whom 
he forgave most. And he said to him: Thou hast 
judged rightly. 44. And turning to the woman, 
he said to Simon: Dost thou see this womanI 
entered into thy house, thou gavest me no water 
for my feet; but she hath washed my feet with 
tears, and wiped them with her hair. 45. Thou 
gavest me no kiss; but she since she came in hath 
not ceased to kiss my feet. 46. My head with 
oil thou didst not anoint! but she with ointment 
hath anointed my feet. 47. Wherefore I say to 
thee: Many sins are forgiven her, for she hath 
loved much. But to whom less is forgiven, he 
loveth less. 48. And he said to her: thy sins are 
forgiven thee. 49. And they that sat at meat with 
him began to say between themsel ves: Who is this 
that forgiveth sins also.? 50. And he said to the wo¬ 
man: Thy faith hath made thee safe, go in peace. 

REFLECTIONS. 

This gospel gives us a distinct idea of three 
different persons; the penitent Magdalen; the 
censorious Pharisee; and the merciful Je.sws. St. 
Mary Magdalen doing penance for her sins —the 
Pharisee censuring her behaviour—and our bless¬ 
ed Saviour justifying her conduct. In St. Mary 
Magdalen, we behold an illustrious example of a 


193 


sincere conversion—in the Pharisee, a picture of 
pride and arrogance—in our blessed Lord, a per¬ 
fect image of that bounty and meekness where¬ 
with he receives ftll sinners who approach him 
with true repentance. This gospel thus epito¬ 
mized, affords excellent subjects for our pious re¬ 
flections. 

The scripture is silent as to the partieular 
crimes of Mary Magdalen; but from what is said 
of her in this gospel, it is the general conjecture 
that she was a public sinner. It is however less 
our concern to know what her sins were, than to 
study how to imitate her sincere conversion; we 
may observe two necessary conditions, which 
ought to accompany our conversions, without 
these, there will be great reason to doubt their 
sincerity. 

First, her conversion was prompt, and without 
the least procrastination; for she no sooner un¬ 
derstood that our Saviour was in the house of the 
Pharisee, but she immediately hastened thither. 
She did not defer her visit to another time; she 
suffered no human considerations to prevent her 
going; nor was she in the least concerned about 
what the world would say of her; but, desirous 
to be released from the deplorable state in which 
she discovers herself, she rejects all other con¬ 
siderations, boldly enters the house, and going 
into the room where Christ was, throws herself 
at his feet, which she washes with her tears, 
wipes with the hair of her head, and kisses with 
all the ardour of sincere love and coritrition; in 
testimony whereof, she anoints them with the 
precious ointment of spikenard, which filled the 
room with the sweetness of its odour. Admira¬ 
ble proofs of a true and sincere conversion. That 
which had heretofore nourished her vanity, and 
contributed to her sins, she now makes the in¬ 
struments of penance, and public proofs of the 
change which. grace had wrought within her. 
Those eyes which had served as fuel to inflame 
unlawful amours, are now drowned in tears. To 


^lose tressfis which had increased her beauty, 
and served as a snare to captivate the hearts of the 
unwary, she now pays no other/’egard than to use 
them as a towel to wipe the feet of Jesus. Her 
precious ointment so profusely spent upon herself, 
to improve her charms, is now more worthily 
bestowed upon her heavenly physician, to whom 
she has recourse for the cure of her disordered 
soul. Ah! would to God that those who imitate 
the criminal life of this holy penitent, could be 
persuaded to resemble her repentance, which was 
not less prompt than permanent: certain proofs 
of its sincerity. Having quitted the ways of sin^ 
she no more returned to its dangerous paths. As 
the love of God was the principle motive of her 
conversion, it kept her constant and faithful to 
him who had thus mercifully forgiven her. Behold 
what an excellent model we have to follow! Let 
us then imitate this illustrious penitent, and with 
her hasten to throw ourselves at the feet of Jesus. 
Let no worldly views or human regard induce us 
to defer our conversion. Let us deplore and 
weep for our sins; let us sacrifice and renounce 
whatever has been to us an occasion of sin, and 
by our future fidelity to God, prove the sincerity 
of our conversion. 

But, whilst in the person of Magdalen we be¬ 
hold a rare example of sincere repentance; in the 
conduct of the Pharisee, we may see a true pic¬ 
ture q/* pride «nd arrogance; a lively portrait of 
those false devotees.^ who value themselves for 
their own virtue, and take the liberty to condemn 
others. These are justly censured in the reproof 
given by Christ to Simon, who concluded that our 
Saviour could be no prophet, and that he was ig¬ 
norant of Magdalen’s being a sinner, becasue he 
permitted her to touch him. This hasty conclu¬ 
sion proceeded from pride: and whilst our blessed 
Lord’s reply convicted him of rash judgment, it 
may also teach us never to take the fallacious 
rule of exterior appearances for our guide, but 
carefully examine the nature and circumstances of 


195 


persons and things before we attempt to decide. 
Had the Pharisee considered that Christ, in 
quality of Saviour, came to seek and save that 
which was lost; and that it was not the healthy 
and sound, but the sick and infirm who stood in 
need of a physician, he would then have found no 
reason to censure our blessed Lord, nor hold the 
poor penitent at his feet in contempt. Here we 
have an admirable lesson not to despise any, for 
their being notorious sinners, but rather to pity 
and pray for them: and if we are not guilty of the 
same crimes, let us not attribute the merit to our¬ 
selves, but to the grace of God, that can change 
the most profligate sinner, into a most perfect 
saint. Thus, as no sinner ought to despair of the 
mercy of God, so we ought not to condemn 
another, or give him up absolutely for lost: for 
the mercy of God is infinite, and he calls sinners 
at all times, as he is at all times willing and 
ready to receive them; of this truth, the con¬ 
duct of Jesus Christ, in this gospel, is a clear 
and evident demonstration. 

The Pharisee, whilst he censured our Saviour, 
condemned the penitent Magdalen; but our Lord, 
by undertaking her defence, evinced such admi¬ 
rable bounty and meekness as we can never suf¬ 
ficiently admire. He could have justly condemn¬ 
ed her for the enormity of her crimes, and the 
disorders of her past life; but he had more regard 
to her tears, her humility and repentance. If his 
justice had been provoked by the one, his mercy 
was moved by the other. As he knew the se¬ 
crets of all hearts, he saw she was penetrated 
with sincere sorrow and contrition: he saw her 
criminal love of the world, changed into a fervent 
love of himself. If she had offended him much, 
she now loved him more. This induced him to 
have pity and compassion on her. He takes no 
notice of the Pharisee’s rash judgment, in saying 
within himself, that he was not a prophet! and by 
an admirable similitude, justified the notice he 
bad taken of her. Having pardoned her sins, he 


196 


said to her: Tliy faith hath saved thee: Go in 
peace. Lei us tlien imitate the bounty and meek¬ 
ness of our Saviour on all occasions, especially 
towards those from whom we may have received 
ofience. A harsh and vindictive spirit is far from 
that meekness and charity, which is the charac¬ 
teristic of a true disciple and follower of Christ. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

All the actions of thy life, O Saviour of the 
woi'ld, serve as so many admirable lessons to us. 
How long, O my Ood! shall I be insensible to 
the example tliou hast given me.^ It is thy grace 
that must make me docile, and enable me to 
practise what thou teachest. That infinite bounty 
and goodness thou didst shew towards Magdalen 
can never be exhausted, but is still the same to 
all sincere penitents. Have then the same com¬ 
passion for me thou hadst for her. Inspire me 
with the same sentiments of sorrow for my sins 
and love of thee. Happy, if by my prayers and 
tears, I could hear thee say: Thy sins are for¬ 
given thee. I acknowledge that they are enor¬ 
mous and innumerable. May thy grace effect in 
me a sincere and thorough conversion, that from 
this moment I may love thee with the whole pow¬ 
ers of my soul, and never offend thee more. 

May I love thee, O dear compassionate Saviour 
of sinners! may I love thee with my whole heart 
above all other things, and all other things only 
in and for thee. O that I could love thee as I 
ought, and as thou deservest! O that my heart 
might burn in seraphic flames of lov^e! Ah! how 
great reason have I to love thee thus much, dear 
Jesus, whose love for me has been so excessive.^ 
If love deserves a return of love, how ought I to 
love thee, who hast given me so many proofs of 
thy boundless love! Love makes thee bear with 
my miseries and ingratitude. Love makes thee 
pardon my sins, and heap thy daily favours upon 
me. Burn, O my soul! consume O my heart! 


197 


with the love of a Saviour, so loving, so good, 
and so beneficent. O God of love! fill my heart 
and soul with a most ardent and constant love of 
thee. May I love thee to the last moment of my 
life, and he afterwards happy in the enjoyment of 
thy love through all eternity. 


FRIDAY 

IN PASSION WEEK. 

The Gospelj John^ xi. 47. 

The chief priests therefore and the Pharisees 
gathered a council, and said: What do we, for this 
man doth many miracles.? 48. If we let him alone 
so, all men will believe in him: and the Romans 
will come and take away our place and nation. 
49. But one of them named Caiphas, being the 
high priest that year, said to them: You know 
nothing at all. 50. Neither do you consider that 
it is expedient for you that one man should die for 
the people, and that the whole nation perish not. 
51. And this he spoke not of himself: but being 
the high priest that year, he prophesied that Je¬ 
sus should die for the nation. 52. And not only 
for the nation, but to gather together in one the 
children of God that w^ere dispersed. 53. From 
that day therefore they devised to put him to 
death. 


REFLECTIONS. 

Nothing could be more absurd and inconsist¬ 
ent than the consultation which the chief priests 
and Pharisees held among themselves. To ac¬ 
knowledge the miracles of our Redeemer, as well 
as the power by w^hich they were wrought, and 
at the same time imagine that he, who had given 
sight to the blind, and raised the dead to life, 
could not escape out of their hands, exhibits at 


198 


once the strengtli of their malice, and the weak- 
xi( ss of their understanding. They met, and de¬ 
liberated how to put the Saviour of the world to 
death; and the motive of their consultation was 
grounded on an apprehension for their own safety. 
If we let this man alone^ say they, every one will 
believe in him! and the Romans will come and 
take away our place and nation. Their fears 
w^ere confined to the present life, lest they should 
lose their temporal possessions. They thought 
not of a future spiritual kingdom; and thus by a 
false application of their wisdom and prudence, 
they suffered in both respects. They lost their 
temporal kingdom, and were excluded from that 
of Jesus Christ. The Romans, as ministers of 
God’s justice, came and destroyed their city and 
ruined their nation, and they have ever since been 
a vagabond race, dispersed over all parts of the 
world. It were to be wished their conduct was 
not imitated by so great a number of Christians, 
whose only solicitude is for the things of this world 
as if those of the other were not worth a serious 
thought. This is that worldly wisdom, which the 
apostle condemns, and declares to be an enemy to 
God, (1 Cor. iii.) and being in itself a folly, alto¬ 
gether as extravagant as that of the Scribes and 
Pharisees, it will be attended with the similar 
consequences. Whereas the wisdom of the gos¬ 
pel teaches us not to consider what may please 
us now, but to look upon the past, and to provide 
for the future. The consideration of these .three 
different periods of time, will make us sensible 
of the loss of the past, the necessity of managing 
well the present, and the indispensible duty of 
providing Jbr the future. In this consists that 
true wisdom which descends from above, and 
which the apostle St. James directs us to ask of 
the Father of Lights, from whom alone proceeds 
every good and perfect gift. {James i.) 

By reflecting on the past, we bring the fruitless 
complaint of the reprobate, as contained in the 
sacred oracles to our recollection. Jllas! what 


199 


has our pride profited us? or what have our riches 
availed us ? li e have erred from the tmth, and 
the light of justice has not shined to us. (Wisd. v.) 
We may discover the little advantage vve have 
gained IVom the time past, and which it is impos¬ 
sible to recall. Ah! should not this reflection 
convince us of the necessity of taking a retrospec¬ 
tive view of our lives, in order to perceive whe¬ 
ther we have been on the gaining or losing side; 
since whatever has not been done to promote our 
spiritual good, has been in reality doing nothing; 
for, can we presume to say tre are improved by 
idle diversions.^ vain amusements., or criminal plea¬ 
sures ? Can the thoughts of the past neglect of 
our Christian duty alFord us any consolation? or 
rather, do not the recollection of them fill us with 
regret and apprehension? 

As the present time, of which every moment is 
a monument of mercy, is allowed us by the good¬ 
ness of God to prepare for eternity, must it not 
be an argument of the most egregious folly to 
misapply it, as it would be of the most consum¬ 
mate wisdom to employ it well? Had we nothing 
to do in this world, but to eat, drink, and divert 
ourselves, an unwxaried pursuit after its ricbes and 
pleasures might in such a case be very justifiable; 
but how contrary is such a notion to what our 
holy religion inculcates! We are taught to be¬ 
lieve that the only object for which we are cre¬ 
ated, is, to love and serve God in this life, that we 
may be happy with him in the next; and that this 
cannot be obtained but by the discharge of those 
duties which God requires of us. To this may 
be added, the shortness and uncertainty of time; 
80 very uncertain, that we can call no part of it 
our own but the present moment. The past is 
no more;—the future is not in our power., nor can 
we, with any certainty, depend upon it. It is only 
ihe present, then, that we can make any use of, 
and that no longer than whilst we actually enjoy 
it. It must, therefore, be the extreme of folly 
and rashness, not to take advantage of time whilst 


200 


it is in our power; and the best proof we can give 
of our wisdom, is, to manage it so prudently as to 
lay up a provision for hereafter. Hence this pro¬ 
position: This life is but a moment, but on this 
moment^ eternity depends. 

Since life, then, passes away like a shadow— 
since we are incessantly hastening towards death, 
which will be immediately succeeded by a happy 
or miserable eternity—what can be called a more 
extreme degree of folly, or rather frenzy, than 
to neglect to provide for eternity.? Good God! 
under the uncertainty of having but a few moments 
to live, and the certainty that my eternal happi¬ 
ness or misery depends on the good or bad use I 
may make of them, shall I not exert the utmost 
diligence in employing them well. O let the 
consideration of this awful truth sink deep in our 
hearts, lest we should hereafter have cause to re¬ 
gret our folly in abusing the time present, when 
the means to redeem it are lost in the gulph of 
eternity:—when the past, present, and future will 
remain incessantly before our eyes: the past time 
ill spent will be to us a constant subject of affliction; 
the present punishment will incessantly torment ms, 
and the prospect of future never-ending miseries 
will overwhelm us in despair. Behold the fatal 
condition of thousands, who have permitted them¬ 
selves to become the deluded victims of their fol¬ 
ly. If, then, we have any regard for our eternal 
salvation, or a desire to avoid their misery, let us 
not imitate their madness, but reflect upon, and 
correct our past errors; let us prudently manage 
the present time, whilst it is in our power, and so 
provide for the future, as to secure our salvation, 
and be eternally happy. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O bountiful Author of time! make me compre¬ 
hend the true value of those precious moments 
thou art pleased to bestow upon me. Thy good¬ 
ness, Lord, is admirable in bearing with me, and 


201 


allowing me time to prepare for eternity. O let 
me no longer insult thy goodness, by abusing 
tby mercy! Teach me that true wisdom, 
whereby 1 may learn the difference between time 
and eternity; between the transitory things of 
this world, and the permanent riches of the 
other. May I, through the assistance of thy 
grace, carefully improve the present time, and 
wisely provide for the future. May I endeavour 
to redeem the errors of my past life, and from 
this moment turn the remainder of it to the best 
advantage. For this purpose, I implore the aid 
of thy grace, since without it I can do nothing. 

O my soul! let us learn to set a just value upon 
time. Since time is given us to prepare for eter¬ 
nity, shall we squander it away in sin and folly? 
Deliver me, O God, from so extravagant a mad¬ 
ness; and make me so dispose of every moment 
of my life, as to answer thy gracious purpose in 
bestowing it upon me. Time, alas! will soon end, 
and be followed by an endless eternity. If I be 
wnse, then, to salvation, I must spend my life in 
thy service, O bounteous Giver of time, since 
every moment thereof is a monument of thy mercy. 
May every moment of my existence, then, be de¬ 
dicated to the love of thee. Ah! it is too precious 
to be abused, lost, or profaned by sinful employ¬ 
ments. I consecrate all my hours, my days and 
years to thee, O my God, that through this short 
time I may pass to a happy eternity. 


SATURDAY 

IN PASSION WEEK. 

The Gospel, John xii. 10. 

But the chief priests thought to kill Lazarus 
also; 11. Because many of the Jews by reason 
of him went away, and believed in Jesus. 12. 
And on the next day a great multitude, that was 


m 


come to the festival day, when they heard tlial 
Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, 13. Took 
branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet 
him, and cried: Hosanna, blessed is he that 
cometh in the name of the Lord, the king of Is¬ 
rael. 14. And Jesus found a young ass, and sat 
upon it, as it is written: 15. Pear not, daughter 
of Sion: behold, thy king cometh sitting on an 
ass^s colt. 16. These things his disciples did 
not know at the first; but when Jesus was glori¬ 
fied, then they remembered that these things 
were written of him: and that they had done 
these things to him. 17. The multitude therefore 
gave testimony, which was with him, when he 
called Lazarus out of the grave, and raised him 
from the dead. 18. For which reason also the 
people came to meet him, because they heard 
that he had done this miracle. 19. The Phari¬ 
sees therefore said among themselves: Do you 
see that we prevail nothing.!^ behold, the whole 
world is gone after him. 20. Now there were 
certain gentiles among them that came up to adore 
on the festival day. 21. These therefore came 
to Philip, who was of Bethsaida of Galilee, 
and desired him, saying: Sir, we would see Je¬ 
sus. 22. Philip cometh and telleth Andrew. Again 
Andrew and Philip told Jesus. 23. But Jesus 
answered them, saying: The hour is come that 
the Son of Man should be glorified. 24. Amen, 
amen I say to you, unless the grain of wheat 
fall into the ground, and die, 25. Itself remain- 
eth alone. But if it die it bringeth forth much 
fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it: and he 
that hateth his life in this world, keepeth it unto 
life eternal. 26. If any man minister to me, let 
him follow me: and where I am, there also shall 
my minister be. If any man minister to me, him 
will my Father honour. 27. Now is my soul 
troubled, and what shall I say.? Father save me 
from this hour. But for this cause I came unto 
this hour. 28. Father, glorify thy name. A 
voice therefore came from heaven: I have both 


m 


glorified it, and will glorify it again. 29. The 
multitude therefore that stood and heard, said that 
it thundered. Others said: An angel spoke to 
him. 30. Jesus answered, and said: This voice 
came not because of me, but for your sakes. 31. 
Now is the judgment of the world; now shall the 
prince of this world be cast out. 32 And 1, if I 
be lifted up from the earth, will draw all things 
to myself. 33. (Now this he said, signifying 
what death he should die.) 34. The multitude 
answered him: We have heard out of the law, 
that Christ abideth forever: and how sayest thou: 
The Son of Man must be lifted up.? Who is 
this Son of Man.? 35. Jesus therefore said to 
them: Yet a little while, the light is among you. 
Walk whilst you have the light, that the darkness 
overtake you not: and he that walketh in dark¬ 
ness knoweth not whither he goeth. 36. Whilst 
you have the light, believe in the light that you 
may be children of light. These things Jesus 
spoke, and he went away and hid himself from 
them. 


REFLECTIONS. 

To love one’s life, and by that means to lose 
it: and to hate one’s life to save it, though seem¬ 
ing contradictions and strange paradoxes, are 
yet, in the gospel declared to be true by Jesus 
Christ himself. The Jews had for some time 
meditated how they might apprehend our blessed 
Lord, and put him to death. They now were 
resolved upon it, and also to kill Lazarus, whom 
he had raised from the dead, because on his ac¬ 
count, many amongst them believed in Christ. 
Their design was not unknown to our Saviour, 
who perfectly understood their malice, and fore¬ 
saw its consequences. That he came to lay 
down his life for the redemption of mankind 
upon the cross, and to take it up again by his glo¬ 
rious resurrection, is clearly intimated when he 
said to his disciples: He that loveth his life shall 


204 


lose it: and he that loseth his life in this ivorld, 
preserveth it unto life everlasting. A yet plain¬ 
er declaration to the apostles, and through them, 
to all Christians, that if, by an over fondness of 
life, and the things of this world, we do any 
thing contrary to our duty, instead of saving our 
life, (unless for a few uncertain moments) we 
shall lose it for all eternity. But if, on the other 
hand, we generously determine to sacrifice our 
worldly vievvs and expectations, and even willing¬ 
ly part with our lives, rather than betray the 
cause of God, we may indeed lose our lives in 
this world, but shall find them again, by living for 
ever, and receiving a superabundant recompense 
for our suffering, in Heaven. 

This important point deserves to be well con¬ 
sidered by all, there being none to whom it is not 
applicable; for by it, is not only to be under¬ 
stood dying for the faith, like the apostles and 
primitive martyrs, but it also includes all Chris¬ 
tians, and every circumstance wherein duty is 
opposed to interest, they must transgress the one, 
or suffer in the other. As this frequently hap¬ 
pens, it were to be desired that Christians acted 
more conformable to the principles of the gospel 
than they generally do. 

What can we lose or gain in this world.Our 
possessions, riches and estates, or part of them 
only; perhaps some advantage or prospect of im¬ 
proving our fortune. Can we hesitate a moment 
in our choice, when we consider, that by doing 
what is contrary to truth and justice, we shall 
certainly lose the favour of God and the happi¬ 
ness of heaven: Suppose even our existence to 
depend on our doing what we are forbid, or not 
doing what we are commanded: is not the consi¬ 
deration of eternal life a sufficient motive to de¬ 
termine our choice, and rather forfeit life, than 
preserve it at the price of our soul.? Can the 
prolonging our lives for a few years be a suffici¬ 
ent reason to lose them for all eternity? Ah! we 
must be strangely infatuated indeed, if the world 


205 


and its enjoyments could have so surprising an 
influence upon us. It will be hard to find any one 
who professes himself a Christian, who will not 
protest against such a choice. How then comes 
it to pass that the practice of so many declare 
their preference of what may be had here, to the 
inestimable treasure they may obtain hereafter? 
This may .appear a severe reflection upon their 
judgment, but it is no more than a natural conse¬ 
quence, drawn from the premises of their irre¬ 
gular conduct. If men acted by the rule of the 
gospel^ injustice, fraud and deceit would not be 
so prevalent in the world. The practical part of 
religion would not be so much neglected, to fol¬ 
low pleasures. In a word; one of the great 
causes of the decline of virtue and piety, is a 
want of serious reflection upon the truths of the 
gospel; for whilst they profess to believe in 
Christ, they do not reflect as they ought, that 
whosoever would save his life^ shall lose it: and 
tchosoever shall lose his life for my sake shall find 
it. For what doth it avail a man., if he gain the 
world., and incur the loss of his o%m soul? Or 
what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? 
(Matt, xvi.) Ah! how unaccountably rash, then 
are those, who hazard the loss of their immortal 
souls, not for gaining the world, nor any part 
thereof, but for a trifling share of its perishable 
riches, counterfeit pleasures and vain amuse¬ 
ments. 

ASPIRATIONS, 

Suffer me not, O merciful Lord, to he so 
strangely infatuated, as to place the transient 
enjoyments of this life in competition with the 
solid and permanent happiness of the next. Let 
me rather, if it be thy holy will, be divested of 
all I possess, even life itself. Whatever trouble 
or inconvenience I may meet with here, I shall 
embrace with joy, provided I can but save my 
soul. I submit to be miserable here, if it be re- 
10 


206 


quisite to make me happy hereafter. My soul 
is thine, for thou hast created it, and for thyself. 
Since thou hast redeemed it at the dear price of 
thy precious blood, I will keep it carefully for 
thee, till thou shalt please to require it of me, 
and take it to thyself, to be happy with thee for 
ever in heaven. 

As thou, O God! art the cause of my being, 
no one can have so just a claim to my soul as thy¬ 
self. It was not for this world that thou madest 
my soul after thine own image and likeness. No; 
thou didst make it for thyself, and that by know¬ 
ing, loving, and serving thee here, I might be 
happy with thee for ever. O may I never forget 
my great and ultimate end. Remember, then, O 
my soul, that we belong to God, and that we bear 
his image and superscription. And has he not 
told us that we must render to God the things 
which belong to God.^ Yes, O my sovereign Lord 
and Master, thou hast said it, and I here surren¬ 
der my soul, and my whole self into thy hand. 
Take it O Lord, and receive it as a tribute just¬ 
ly due to thy divine Majesty. Mayest thou to¬ 
tally possess it here, that it may possess and en¬ 
joy thee hereafter through all eternity. 

—©O©— 

Px\LM SUNDAY, 


Talces its denomination from an ancient custom, still re¬ 
tained in the church, of solemnly blessing- palms or the 
boughs of trees, and distributing them to the faithful, who 
bear them in tlteir hands this day in honour and in re¬ 
membrance of our blessed I.ord’s triumphant entiy into 
Jeru'salem six days before his passion, when the multitude 
going forth to meet him, some strewing boughs of trees in 
the wav, others spreading their garments, and others car¬ 
rying branches of palms in their hands, and all exclaim- 
iiig, IJoaanna to the ‘‘^071 of David, ^c. From this entry 
of Jesus Ciirist into Jerusalem, the church reads us a pro¬ 
found lesson of humility Our blessed Saviour, though he 
was I.oid i>f heaven and earth yet chose to ride upon an 
ass, the meanest and most contemptible of beasts, to cor- 


207 


rect our pride, and teach us not to affect the grandeur 
and honours of this world, which are so vain and transi¬ 
ent. Let us then practice humility, that thereby imitating 
our divine Saviour, we may the better dispose ourselves to 
celebrate the mysteries of this Holy Week, and partake 
of the mercies designed for us. 

AT BLESSING OF THE PALMS. 

The Gospel, Matt. xxi. 1. 

And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, 
and were come to Bethphage, unto Mount Olivet, 
then Jesus sent two disciples, 2. Saying to 
them: Go ye into the village that is over against 
you, and immediately you shall find an ass tied 
and a colt with her: loose them and bring them 
to me: 3. And if any man shall say to you, say 
ye, that the Lord hatli need of tliem: and forth¬ 
with he will let them go. 4. Now all this was 
done that the word might be fulfilled which was 
spoken by the prophet, saying: 5. Tell ye the 
daughter of Sion: Behold, thy king cometh 
to tliee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a 
colt the foal of her that is used to the yoke. 6. 
And the disciples going, did as Jesus commanded 
them. 7. And they brought the ass and the colt: 
and laid their garments upon them, and made him 
sit thereon. 8. And a very great multitude 
spread their garments in the way: and others cut 
down boughs from the trees, and strewed them in 
the way: 9. And the multitude that went be¬ 
fore and that followed, cried, saying: Hosanna to 
the Son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in 
the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest. 

REFLECTIONS. 

Nothing can be more inconstant than the 
world; nothing more vain than the honours with 
which it flatters its admirers. The wind which 
so frequently changes, is not so uncertain as 
human applause. Of this, the conduct of the 


208 


jews towards our blessed Saviour is a convincing 
proof. The holy Jesus made his entry into Je¬ 
rusalem amidst the acclamations and Hosannas 
of the people, who, on hearing he was ap¬ 
proaching, went out in multitudes to meet him, 
bearing palms in their hands, and strewing the 
way with boughs of trees. Others more zealous 
to shew him respect, stripped themselves of 
their very garments, and spread them in the 
high way, that he might ride upon them; all 
crowding about him, and singing aloud. Hosanna 
in the highest: blessed be he who cometh in the name 
of the Lord: Hosanna to the Son of David. 
(Matt, xxi.) In this manner they conducted him 
into the city, with all the marks of a sincere 
veneration: but no sooner had he entered into the 
city, than the multitude dispersed, without taking 
any further notice of him, or inviting him to their 
homes to take refreshment; so that this day of 
triumph was to our blessed Lord a day of fasting, 
as in the evening he was obliged to quit the city, 
and retire to Bethania, there to seek for lodging 
and refreshment for himself and his disciples. 
Strange inconstancy of a giddy multitude! true 
picture of the worlds and what we may expect 
from it! 

It is in commemoration of this entrance of 
Christ into Jerusalem, that the church orders 
palms, or boughs of trees, to be blessed and 
borne in the hands of her children; desiring at 
the same time, that we would enter into her pi¬ 
ous sentiments, and learn those practical les¬ 
sons she inculcates from this day’s solemnity. 
Having now passed over the greatest part of Lent^ 
we are come to the last Week^ justly called Holy, 
on account of those sacred mysteries which are 
particularly proposed for our pious reflections, 
and the subject of the long and solemn devotions 
of the Church at this time. We must now by 
retirement and a more than ordinary devotion, 
atone for what has been deficient in our conduct 
during the holy time of Lent: We should serious- 


209 


^' 

ly consider what God has done for ws, his hn- 
mense love, and our reciprocal obligations to him. 
It is for this reason that the passion of our blessed 
Saviour, the prophecies relating to, and the 
circumstances attending it is the subject of the 
epistles and gospels which the church reads at 
this time. Therefore, the best method of conse¬ 
crating Holy Week to God, is to accompany the 
church by making some mystery or part of 
Christ’s passion, the subject of our private devo¬ 
tions. We have just reason to reflect upon the 
subject with gratitude every day of our lives; 
but to neglect it at this time, would convict us of 
a criminal insensibility, justly deserving reproof. 
Diversions and entertainments, surely may be 
suspended for a few days, being so inconsistent 
with the serious duties of this week, and should 
not be thought on, much less sought after. 

To commence this holy week in a proper man¬ 
ner, let us this day consider how our blessed 
Lord disposes himself for his approaching pas¬ 
sion. The time then being come when the Son 
of God had determined to offer himself to his 
eternal Father, as a sacrifice for the redemption 
of mankind, he prepares to enter upon the glori¬ 
ous, but bitter stage of his sufferings; and re- 
joicing as a giant to run his course. (Psal. xviii.) 
carried on by the same ardent love which brought 
him down from heaven to earth, he made his en¬ 
trance into Jerusalem, there to complete the 
great work he had so mercifully begun. He 
would not make his entry with pomp and show, 
like worldly princes glittering in gold and silver, 
but chose to ride upon one of the meanest and 
most contemptible of beasts. ^Astonishing sight! 
Behold the great Lord of the universe enters into 
Jerusalem, the capital of Judea, riding upon an 
ass; and though he might have been attended by 
legions of angels, and have appeared with greater 
splendour than any of the Roman Caesars, yet he 
would not. His attendants are his disciples, a 
few poor fishermen, and the multitude who 


210 


« 

went forth to meet, him. He enters^ it is triie^ in 
triumph; but it is to pass from that triumph to 
an ignominious death. He is ushered in by the 
loud acclamations of a people, by whom he was 
within a few days after, treated with the great¬ 
est barbarity. He thus made his entrance to ful¬ 
fil the prediction of the prophet Zachary, and to 
leave the obstinate Jews without an excuse for 
not acknowledging him to be their promised 
Messias, since there was not one of the prophe¬ 
cies concerning him, which had not been fulfilled 
in the most minute circumstance. 

We should learn from the example of our Lord 
and Master, to despise the honours of this world. 
Where providence has placed us in an elevated 
station, we may lawfully sustain that rank, which 
is necessary to maintain the respect due to the 
character we have to support; but without pride 
or haughtiness, or afiection for magnificence and 
parade. The distinction between us and those of 
an inferior rank, may give us this useful lesson, 
that as the difference is not owmg to ourselves 
hut to the bountiful hand of God, we must grate¬ 
fully acknowledge his gifts, and apply them to his 
honour and glory ; we must have compassion on 
the poor, and rejoice that it is in our power to 
relieve their wants. Thus our blessed Saviour 
was not in the least moved by the extraordinary 
honours paid him by the multitude, or their loud 
Hosannas, and proclaiming him the Son of David. 
Drawing near to Jerusalem, he wept tenderly 
over that unhappy city, bewailed the blindness of 
that obstinate people, and shed tears of compas¬ 
sion over their impending ruin. Excellent in¬ 
struction for his followers, not to covet honours 
and dignities, nor be elated with the praises of 
men; but to consider ourselves in a true light, 
mourn over our weakness and miseries, and sin¬ 
cerely compassionate those of others. 

Alas! w^hat reason can we have to place our 
affections on any object in this world, where eve¬ 
ry thing is so uncertain and subject to vicissitude, 


2U 


nor value ourselves upon the applause of men, 
which are so fickle.and liable to change? The 
multitude often exclaim against those as unworthy 
to live, whom a few days before they had extol¬ 
led above the skies, nay, even deified. Those 
very Jews who sung Hosanna to our Saviour, 
and proclaimed him the son of David, in a few 
days afterwards exclaimed. Take him away^ take 
him away, crucify him, crucify him. We will not 
have this man but Barabbas. 

As the ceremony of bearing palms in our hands 
is symbolical of Christ’s triumph over sin and 
death, so ought it also, in some measure, be a 
mark of our victory. For what will it avail us 
that Christ has overcome the devil, purchased our 
redemption, and restored us to the glorious liber¬ 
ty of the sons of God, if we do not endeavour to 
maintain that liberty, but permit ourselves to fall 
again under his tyranny, by becoming slaves to 
sin. In order to avoid so great a misfortune, we 
must consider that whilst we remain in this world 
we are engaged in a warfare against our spiritual 
enemies, which Jesus Christ has not only over¬ 
come, but has left us an example how we may 
conquer them. As he is our captain and leader, 
we must therefore obey his orders, otherwise we 
shall soon fall into their power. Looking then 
upon the palms we receive into our hands this 
day; let their mystical sigyiification inspire us with 
the generous resolution of combating effectually; 
for, it is not by thinking or resolving, but 6 ^ act¬ 
ing, that we can gain the victory', and be entitled 
to the triumph. A soldier, who resolved to fight 
his enemy, but when attacked makes little or no 
resistance, must expect either to be killed or 
made j>risoner: what then can those Christians 
expect, who resolve to resist the devil, but on 
the first attack, yield, surrender their arms, 
and submit to his power? Such can claim no share 
in the solemnity of this day, nor be entitled to any 
part in Christ’s triumph: and if they remain slaves 
under the most cruel of tyrants, they have only to 


212 


l)lame their own cowardice; for, however violent¬ 
ly the devil may assault us, he cannot prevail, if 
we are not wanting to ourselves. He may indeed 
solicit, persuade, and allure, hut he cannot force 
us, since we have both free-will and liberty, as 
well as the grace of God to assist us. He can do 
us no injury, unless we yield to his temptations; 
for, if we resist him, he will fly from us, and the 
more violent his solicitations, the more glorious 
will be our victory, and the more brilliant our 
reward. The more wounds a soldier receives, will 
render his victories more illustrious, and increase 
his reputation with his prince. It is the same in 
our spiritual combats against the trorZd, ihe jiesh 
and the devil. The more strenuously we resist 
them, the sooner we shall overcome them, and 
tlie greater will be our recompense. Then may 
we receive palms here, as pledges of those never- 
fading crowns of glory, we shall receive hereafter. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

Adorable Jesus! permit me with a grateful 
heart to sing aloud: Blessed art thou., O Son of 
David. Glory be to thee in the highest. But 
Avhilst I thus desire to partake of thy triumphs, O 
let me likewise share in thy victories; and by a 
faithful resistance, put all my enemies to flight. 
As thou hast broken my chains, and set me at 
liberty, let me never more, become a slave to sin, 
nor rob thee of the fruits of that conquest which 
cost thee so many labours, and so much blood. 
Thou hast taught us to despise the fading uncer¬ 
tain honours of this world, and by the way of hu¬ 
mility, dost conduct us tb the everlasting glory of 
thy heavenly kingdom. O may thy exaniple be 
deeply imprinted in my heart, and constantly be¬ 
fore my eyes, that I may make it the invariable 
rule of my conduct! Then shall I know how to 
be humble, though thy providence may place me 
in a high station; or be content with my lot, if 
thou slialt judge proper to rank me amongst those 


21 $ 


of the lowest class; for whatever may he my state 
or condition here, if I follow thee, I shall be happy 
hereafter. 

Thou, O dear Redeemer of the world! wast 
not in the least moved at the loud acclamations of 
the people, but didst pity their miserable blind¬ 
ness, and shed tears over their impending ruin. 
Suffer me not to be puffed up with the praises of 
men, nor value myself upon their applause, but 
rather eradicate all vain glory and ambition from 
my heart, that I may seek only to please thee. 

O thou true happiness of my soul! when shall I 
seek after thee, and adhere to thee alone Where 
shall I find what can deserve my love and affec¬ 
tion so much as thou dost.^ Can the world, or 
any thing it contains, satisfy the demands of a 
soul that loves thee, and is only created for the en¬ 
joyment of thyself.!^ Alas! my God, the world is 
composed of nothing but vanity and deceit: its 
honours are empty bubbles; its riches mean and 
despicable; and its pleasures, filth; when com¬ 
pared to thee, the endless source of all good. O 
suffer me not then foolishly, to misplace my af¬ 
fections on them. My heart was created only 
for thee, for thou hast made it for thyself. O may 
it never be at rest, till it finally comes to rest m 
thee. 



MONDAY 


IN HOLY WEEK. 

The Oospelj John xii. 1. 

Now Jesus six days before the pasch came t© 
Bethania, where Lazarus had been dead, w^hom 
Jesus raised to life. 2. And they made him a 
supper there; and Martha served, but Lazarus 
was one of them that were at table with him. 3. 
Mary therefore took a pound of ointment of right 
spikenard, of great price, and anointed the feet 
10 * 


2U 


of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair: and 
the house was filled with the odour of the oint¬ 
ment. 4. Then one of his disciples, Judas Isca¬ 
riot, he that was about to betray him, said: 5. 
Why was not this ointment sold for three hun¬ 
dred pence, and given to the poor.^ 6. Now he 
said this, not because he cared for the poor, but 
because he was a thief, and having the purse, 
carried what was put therein. 7. But Jesus said: 
Let her alone, that she may keep it against the 
day of my burial: 8. For the poor you have al¬ 
ways with you; but me you have not always. S. 
A great multitude therefore of the Jews knew that 
he was there: and they came, not for Jesus’s sake 
only, but that they might see Lazarus, whom he 
had raised from the dead. 

REFLECTIONS. 

On the great desire of Christ to suffer for us. 

As the sufferings and death of Jesus Christ are 
proposed by the Church for the exercise of our 
pious thoughts this week; we may consider our 
dear Redeemer, in this gospel, as preparing him¬ 
self to undergo those sufferings, and accept tliat 
death which was designed for him. When the 
time drew near, he went to the house of Mary and 
Martha, where those pious sisters entertained 
him with their accustomed charity and hospitality. 
Martha waited, and Lazarus, their brother, whom 
Jesus had raised from the dead, sat at table with 
him: but Mary, desirous to give her dear Lord a 
farewell proof of her immense love and affection, 
took some of her precious ointment of spikenard, 
and having anointed his feet therewith, wiped 
them with the hair of her head. When she had 
once before w^ashed them with her penitential 
tears, and kissed'them with the most ardent af¬ 
fection of love and contrition, Simon the Pha¬ 
risee condemned her as a sinner, but our blessed 
Lord pleaded in her behalf, and sent her away in 


215 


peace, (Luke vii.) Now the traitor, Judas Isca¬ 
riot, murmurs at her pious generosity, and under 
the mask of compassion for the indigent, demands 
why the ointment was not sold for three hundred 
Roman pence, and given to the poor. Here 
Christ again becomes her advocate, and justifies 
what she did, not without a tacit condemnation of 
the traitorous apostle’s covetousness, who, as the 
Evangelist observes, did not put the question out 
of any real compassion for the poor, but with a 
view to his own private benefit, for bearing the 
purse, and what was put therein by those devout 
people who ministered to Christ and his disci¬ 
ples, bethought that three hundred Roman pence 
would be in his power, and which he might pri¬ 
vately apply to his own use. Ah! wretched spirit 
of covetousness! which induced the unhappy Ju¬ 
das to betray his Master, and deliver him into the 
hands of his enemies, for thirty pieces of silver. 
This the holy Jesus knew, and therefore said, 
that whatever St. Mary Magdalen had done, was in 
order to his burial; signifying also, that it was 
the last time she should receive him into her 
house, or entertain him at her table, (Mark xiv.) 

Among the several subjects which here pre¬ 
sent themselves to our thoughts, the most suit¬ 
able to the present holy season, is to consider the 
ardent desire Christ had of sutfering, that theieby 
he might redeem us from sin and death, and re¬ 
store us to eternal life: / have a baptism to be 
baptized with; and I am straitened till it be accom¬ 
plished^ (Luke xii.) So earnestly did he long for 
the time of his sutfering, that celebrating his last 
supper with his disciples, he said to Judas, What 
thou dost, do quickly, (John xiii.) As the re¬ 
demption of man was the object of his coming into 
the world, and his sufferings and death, die means to 
obtain that end, he anxiously wished for its ac¬ 
complishment. For this reason he said to his apos¬ 
tles: I have earnestly desired to eat this pasch with 
you before / suffer, (Luke xxii.) as being the last 
time, and which was to be immediately succeed- 


216 


ed by his passion. After his prayer in the gar¬ 
den, as if impatient to wait the coming of Judas, 
he said to St Peter, let us go /lewce, (Matt 

xxvi.) and immediately went to meet his enemies, 
and delivered himself into their hands. The 
zealous prince of the apostles, drew his sword in 
defence of his Master, and cut off the ear of the 
high priest’s servant; but our blessed Saviour im¬ 
mediately ordered him to put it up again into the 
scabbard. He required no assistance, because 
he desired not to be delivered. His sufferings 
were his own free choice. Had he not wil¬ 
lingly permitted the Jews to lay hands on him, 
all the powers in the universe could never hurt 
him. And to convince them how easily he might 
have delivered himself out of their hands, with 
three words he laid them prostrate at his feet. 
He asked them whom they sought.? They an¬ 
swered, Jesus of JVazarethj (John xviii.) As 
soon as he replied, / am /le, they fell backwards 
on the ground; nor could they rise till he gave 
them permission. This circumstance, whilst it 
shew^s that his sufferings were of his own choice, 
so it also demonstrates the great and ardent desire 
he had of suffering. Ohlatus est quia ipse voluit. 
He was offered up, because he himself icoiild. 
(Isaias liii.) 

From the consideration of the great desire 
wdiich Christ had to suffer death, w e may extend 
our thoughts further, and reflect for whom it was 
that he thus died. Ah! it w^as for us, for our re¬ 
demption, and to free us from the deplorable 
state to which w^e were reduced by sin. This 
will fill our minds with adequate ideas of his great 
love towards us, and of our great obligations to 
love him. He died for our sins, which made us 
the enemies of God, and the unfortunate objects 
of his just indignation. O wonderful instance of 
divine bounty and goodness I which the apostle 
thus describes with all the energy of inspired elo¬ 
quence: Why did Christ, when we were yet weak, 
in due time die for the wicked? For scarce for a 


217 


just man doth any one die: yet perhaps for a good 
man, some one may dare to die. But God re¬ 
commends his love to us; inasmuch as when we 
were sinners, Christ died for us, (Rom. v.) We 
were sinners, and as such, condemned not only to 
temporal, but eternal death; and in this deplora¬ 
ble condition must have for ever remained, had 
not the mercy of God from on high visited us. 
Justice had pronounced the terrible decree against 
us, but mercy intervened and reversed the sentence. 
The Son of God suffered death to make atone¬ 
ment for our sins, to satisfy the justice of his 
eternal Father, and deliver us from eternal death; 
making our temporal death, which in itself is so 
bitter and disagreeable, advantageous to us, by 
rendering it no more than a short and easy pas¬ 
sage to eternal happiness. This is that immense 
love, which the beloved apostle thus describes: 
So hath God loved the world, that he hath given his 
only begotten Son, that the world should be saved 
by him, (John iii.) Who hath also loved us, and 
washed us from our sins, by his blood, (Apoc. i.) 
Yes, it was for the love of us, that Christ suffer¬ 
ed, died upon the cross, and endured all those 
cruel pains and torments, which are related by 
the holy evangelists, in order to excite us to the 
love of him. 

That this ought to be the consequence of what 
he has done for us, is easily proved; but would 
to God, that we could as easily produce its ef¬ 
fect! I do not mean a soft, tender compassion 
for his sufferings, or a pity for his cruel torments, 
and bitter passion; for though these may be symp¬ 
toms of our love, yet they are not all, that is re¬ 
quired at our hands. No; I speak of a more ex¬ 
tensive love. Ji love which produces a great ha- , 
tred of sin, the only cause of his svffenngs; an ex¬ 
treme aversion for every thing that displeases him, 
and a solicitude to please him, by observing his 
holy commands. A love that makes us suffer for 
him with alacrity, and to rest content under all the 
dispensations of his holy will. A love that causes 


21S 


us to witlidraw our hearts and affections from this 
world, and make us vigorously tend towards the 
object of our love, that we may be enabled to say, 
I live, not I; but Christ in me, and I in him, 
(Gal. ii.) This is that love which he justly re¬ 
quires we should give him in return for his love; 
and it is thus we must prove the truth of what we 
assert, when we say, we love him. If you love 
me, keep my commandments, (John xiv.) With¬ 
out so doing, our professions of love are vain, nor 
will his sufferings be of any advantage to us. 
Whilst then, we reflect on the passion of our Sa¬ 
viour, let the result of our meditations be, a se¬ 
rious and sincere resolution to give him this proof 
of our love: and beholding what he has suffered 
to satisfy for our sins, let us be careful never 
more to take part with those who crucified him, 
or renew his sufferings by sin. It is thus we must 
honour the mysteries of this holy time, if we 
would make our devotions acceptable to God, 
and hope to obtain the happiness purchased for 
us by the sacred blood of Jesus. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O adorable Jesus! blessed author of life! and 
eternal source of happiness! thou didst freely and 
of thine own accord, suffer death, that thou 
mightest give us true life. Thou didst even burn 
with a holy impatience, till the time came where¬ 
in thou wast to suffer for sinners. Ah! what re¬ 
turn are we capable of making for this thy bound¬ 
less love. It was love, dear Lord, that induced 
thee to undergo with so much ardour, those cruel 
torments which thou sufferedst for my sake. It 
was love which nailed thee to the cross, and was 
the cause of thy death. O that I could, in some 
measure, return thee love for love! I compas¬ 
sionate thy sufferings, O divine Redeemer of 
mankind! and admire the wonderful effects of 
thy love. Let this admiration produce the de¬ 
sired effects in my heart, of truly loving thee, and 


219 

manifesting this love, by a faithful observance of 
thy commandments. 

Ah, dearest Lord! let me henceforth have no 
other desire than to love thee. Ah! why should 
I think any object worth my attention but thyself, 
who has sutFered so much for my sake. And 
shall I be unwilling to make thee some requital.'* or 
rather shall I not attempt to secure the happiness 
of my own soul, redeemed by thy precious blood, 
and at the price of so many torments and cruel 
sutFerings? No, my Lord and my God! I will 
never be so ungrateful to thy love, nor esteem 
lightly, what hath cost thee so dear. Because 
thou hast 'purchased my soul^ / will carefully pre¬ 
serve it for thee^ and cheerfully comply with what¬ 
ever may be necessary for its preservation. I 
will part with every thing, nay, even life itself, 
rather than hazard the loss of my soul, or that all 
that thou hast done for its salvation should be 
rendered fruitless, by a criminal course of life. 


TUESDAY 

IN HOLY WEEK. 

The Gospel, or Passion, Mark xiv. 32. 

And they came to a farm called Gethsemani. 
And he saith to his disciples: Sit you here while 
I pray. 33. And he taketh Peter, and James, 
and John with him; and he began to fear, and to 
be heavy. 34. And he saith to them: My soul 
is sorrowful even unto death; stay you here, and 
watch. 33. And when he had gone forward a 
little, he fell flat on the ground; and he prayed 
that if it might he, the hour might pass from him; 
36. And he said: Abba, Father, all things are 
possible to thee, take away this chalice from me, 
but not what I will, but what thou wilt. 37. 
And he cometh, and findeth them sleeping. And 
he saith to Peter; Simon, sleepest thou? couldst 


220 


Ihou not watch one hour! 38. Watch ye, and 
pray that you enter not into temptation. The 
spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. 
39. And going away again, he prayed* saying the 
same words. 40. And when he returned he 
found them again asleep, (for their eyes were 
heavy) and they knew not what to answer him. 

41. And he cometh the third time, and saith to 
them: Sleep ye now, and take your rest. It is 
enough: the hour is come; behold the Son of 
Man shall be betrayed into the hands of sinners. 

42. Rise up, let us go. Behold, he that will be¬ 
tray me is at hand. 

REFLECTIONS. 

On Jesus praying in the Garden. 

The Son of God having celebrated the pass- 
over with his disciples, and instituted the most 
holy sacrament of the Eucharist; rising from 
table, he retires with them to the garden of Geth- 
semani, whither he had been accustomed to resort 
with the apostles, and therefore a place well 
known to the traitor Judas, Being about to en¬ 
ter upon the theatre of his passion, he would 
open the first scene in a garden, as it was in the 
garden of Eden that sin was committed by our 
first parents, for the expiation of which, he is now 
about to suffer and die. Being arrived at this 
place, he desires his other disciples stay there 
and watch, whilst he retired further to pray. 
But as Peter, James, and John, had been present 
with him on mount Thabor, and there beheld his 
glorious transfiguration, he would have them also 
present at his agony, to be witnesses of what 
passed in the garden of Gethsemani. Having 
said to them, JMy soul is sorrowful even to death, 
he began to fear and to be heavy. From this first 
station of his passion, let us accompany him, with 
all those tender sentiments, which sorrow, love^ 
and gratitude can inspire. 


m 


As the life of the adorable Jesus, which began 
in the stable of Bethlehem, was one uninterrupt¬ 
ed series of suffering, he would end it also in pain, 
and therefore commences his passion by an extra¬ 
ordinary son*ow and grief, which proceeded not 
so much from a knowledge of what he had to 
undergo from the malice and barbarity of the 
Jews, as from beholding those sins for which he 
was to suffer: for although the prospect of the 
cruel torments prepared for him, might make 
some impression on his mind, still what afflicted 
him most was, the sms of mankind, not only those 
of past ages, but also those of future times, even 
to the end of the world. He foresaw the extreme 
ingratitude wherewith his infinile love and bounty 
would be repaid by Christians, and how few 
would profit by his death and passion, compared 
w ith the great number that would perish by their 
wilful abuse of his mercies, notwithstanding what 
he had suffered to save them. The thought of 
dying for so many ungrateful wretches, who by 
their sins would trample on his sacred blood, and 
again crucify him, filled his soul with so much 
grief, as to make him cry out, My soul is sorrow¬ 
ful even tinio death. Ah! how great ought ^o be 
our confusion, to behold Jesus thus abandon him¬ 
self to sorrow, for those sins which we frequent¬ 
ly take so much pleasure in committing. 

Having expressed his grief to his disciples, he 
again retires from them, and falling prostrate on 
the ground, prays earnestly to his Father, that 
the cup of his sufferings might pass away from 
him: but w'ith the most perfect resignation he 
adds, JVot what I will^ but lohat thou wilt. This 
prayer he repeats thrice, wdth the same spirit of 
submission: O my Father, if this cup carinot pass 
away except I drink it, thy will be done, (Matt, xxvi.) 
The evangelist St. Luke adds, that being in agony 
he prayed the more. And his sweat was as drops of 
blood trickling down upon the ground. And an 
angel appeared to him from heaven, comforting him, 
(Luke xxii.) O astonishing sight! behold the 


222 


eternal Son of God, prostrate like a poor crimi¬ 
nal, begging for mercy, beseeching his heavenly 
Father, that the cup of sufferings might, if pos¬ 
sible, pass aw^ay from him See with what fer¬ 
vour and solicitude our Saviour prays! O what 
a reproach to our tepidity and indevotion! He 
permits human nature to betray itself, in begging 
not to suffer; but having voluntarily undertaken 
his sufferings, he is content, and concludes his 
prayer with the most perfect resignation to his 
heavenly Father’s will. Ah! how sensible must 
not the anguish of his soul have been, which could 
force a bloody sweat from every pore of his sa¬ 
cred body. An angel is sent down from heaven 
to comfort him; but what comfort could the great 
Creator receive from an angel, one of his crea¬ 
tures! We may piously suppose that he, with 
the utmost respect, laid before our blessed Sa¬ 
viour the glory of his eternal Father, which he 
was always so desirous of advancing, as well as 
the honour which would redound to his own sa¬ 
cred humanity, from his victory over the devil: 
and the happiness of those, who should be saved 
through his sufferings. These, or similar mo¬ 
tives, we may suppose the angel represented to 
Jesus Christ, who willingly accepting, what he 
had voluntarily chosen, arises from prayer and 
goes to meet his enemies, accompanied by the 
traitor Judas, who was advancing to betray him 
into their hands. 

During this time, the apostles were in a pro¬ 
found sleep, without any apprehension for the 
safety of their divine Master: their specious pro¬ 
mises never to forsake him, were buried in a deep 
slumber. The holy Jesus, full of mildness and con¬ 
descension, gently reproves their negligence; and 
even becomes the apologist for the weakness of 
nature. He exhorts them to watch and pray, 
that they might not enter into temptation; and 
through them, admonishes us to be always upon 
our guard, that we may not grant the enemy any 
advantage over us. 


22S 


There are many excellent instructions contain¬ 
ed in the mystery of our Lord’s agony and prayer 
in the garden. From his repeated petitions to 
his heavenly Father, we are taught to have fre¬ 
quent recourse to God by prayer, in all our 
troubles and adversities—to seek consolation 
from him, by an entire resignation to his holy 
will—and never desire to be freed from suffer¬ 
ing, further than as it may he agreeable to his 
blessed will. We are instructed to be fervent 
and persevering in prayer, and not to grow faint 
or anxious to leave off. We may further learn 
from the agony of Jesus, not to think all is lost, 
when we feel a repugnance to suffer and not judge 
from the weakness of the flesh, but from the dis¬ 
positions of our will. Christ, in the garden, 
made the opposition of his two wills apparent; by 
the one he is averse to suffering, and by the other 
he submitted to the will of his Father, and freely 
accepted of his passion; hereby to instruct us, 
that we must not be discouraged, when we find 
the flesh rebel against the spirit, but endeavour 
to keep it in subjection. Nor can its motions, 
how irregular soever they may be, ever hurt us, 
whilst our will refuses its consent, and we do no¬ 
thing contrary to the law of God. Lastly, our 
blessed Lord besought his Father to be exempt¬ 
ed from suffering, though he knew, that havmg 
of his own free will offered himself to suffer, his 
petition would not be granted, to instruct us in 
this necessary truth, that the divine assistance 
does not always consist in delivering us from 
troubles and sufferings, but in making us support 
them with an humble submission to the will of 
God, for which reason we say, in all our trials 
and afflictions. Lord! if it be possible let this cup 
pass from me: nevertheless, not as I will, but as 
thou wilt, (Matt, xxvi.) 

ASPIRATIONS. 

How different is my conduct from thine, O 
adorable Saviour of the world! 1 do my utmost 


224 ^ 


to deliver myself from that sadness and dejection 
of spirit in which I find myself at every cross or 
trifling affliction, whilst thou, the true repose of 
souls, dost wilfully resign thyself to grief and 
sorrow. Ah! yes, vanquished by love, thou wil¬ 
lingly exhibits to thy mind all than can afflict thy 
charitable and tender heart; thou hast, O Lord, a 
sense of the evils to which we are subject, but 
from causes quite opposite; we are sensible of 
them, because we are miserable; and thou, be¬ 
cause thou art merciful. Through the immensity 
of thy love, thou hast compassion on all our neces¬ 
sities and afflictions, that considering thyself to 
have been subject to our weakness, we might 
seek our consolation in thee. For this reason, 
thou dost assure us by thine own holy example, 
that although we find ourselves w'eak, yet we 
should never despond; or that however over¬ 
whelmed v/ith sadness, or sensible of our micery, 
we should never think ourselves abandoned by 
thee. May thy holy name be praised, O God of 
infinite bounty! who hast thus converted our 
weakness into a means of bringing us to thee, by 
suffering with thee, and like thee in patience and 
resigna ion to thy holy will. 

O Jesus, eternal source of all happiness! the 
beatitude of heaven, and crown of all the saints! 
what excessive astonishment ought i not feel, 
wdien I behold thee thus sorrowful and oppressed 
with grief.Ah, dearest Lord! can any thing be 
capable of afflicting thee, wfflo art the source of 
true joy, the sovereign remedy of all our evils, 
and only comfort in all our troubles? Alas! dear 
Redeemer, thy heart overflow's with love for us, 
and thy concern for our salvation makes thee 
sad! Thou beholdest, not only the torments of 
thy dolorous and bitter passion, but also, the hor¬ 
rible ingratitude of those for whom thou dost suf¬ 
fer. O my God! when I rejlect on the unworthy 
use / have made of thy bounty^ I cease to wonder 
at thy sorrow: and how ought I he covered with 
confusion^ when I consider my wretched ingrati^ 
tude towards thee? 


225 


O true, and only happiness of my soul! what 
excuse can I make for having spent my life in the 
commission of those sins, which caused thee such 
an excess of grief, as to force blood from every 
pore of thy sacred body? How can I support 
myself, when I behold thee in a bitter agony, 
shedding tears for the sins I have committed, 
and expiating by such intense sorrow, those 
criminal pleasures to which I have abandoned 
myself. Pardon^ O dear Lord! through thy 
agony and bloody sweaty my past ingratitude^ 
and make me more faithful to my duty for the 
time to come^ that thy sacred blood may not be 
shed for me in vain. 


WEDNE.SDAY 

IN HOLY WEEK. 

The Gospel, or Passion, Luke, xxii. 66. and 
xxiii. 1. 

And as soon as it was day, the ancients of the 
people, and the chief priests, and scribes came 
together, and they brought him into their council, 
saying: If thou be the Christ, tell us. 67. And 
he said to them: If I shall tell you, you will not 
believe me: 68. And if 1 shall also ask you, )^ou 
will not answer me, nor let me go. 69. But 
hereafter the Son of Man shall be sitting on the 
right hand of the power of God. 70. Then said 
they all: Art thou then the Son of God? And 
he said: You say, that I am. 71 Then they 
said: What need we any further testimony? For 
we ourselves have heard it from his own mouth, 
xxiii. 1. And the whole multitude of them rose 
up, and led him away to Pilate. 2. And they 
began to cjipcuse him, saying: We have found this 
man perverting our nation, and forbidding to give 
tribute to Caesar, and saying that he is Christ the 
king. 3. And Pilate asked him, saying: Art 


thou the king of the Jews? And he answered 
and said: Thou sayest it. 4. Then Pilate said 
to the chief priests and to the multitude: I find 
no cause in this man. 5. But they were more 
earnest, saying: He stirreth up the people, teach¬ 
ing throughout all Judea, beginning from Galli- 
lee to this place. 6. And Pilate hearing of Galli- 
lee, asked if the man was a Galilean? 7. And 
when he understood that he belonged to Herod’s 
jurisdiction, he sent him away to Herod, who 
himself was also at Jerusalem in those days. 8. 
And Herod seeing Jesus was very glad, for he 
was desirous for a long time to see him, because 
he had heard many things of him: and he hoped 
to see some miracle wrought by him. 9* And he 
questioned him with many ^vords. But he an¬ 
swered him nothing. 10. And the chief priests 
and the scribes stood by, earnestly accusing hhn. 
11. And Herod with his soldiers set him at 
nought; and mocked him, putting on him a white 
garment, and sent him back to Pilate. 12. And 
Herod and Pilate were made friends together 
that same day: for before they were enemies one 
to another. 13. Then Pilate calling together 
the chief priests, and the magistrates, and the 
people, 14. vSaid to them: You have brought 
this man to me, as one that perverteth the peo¬ 
ple, and behold I having examined him before 
you, find no cause in this man touching those 
things wherein you accuse him. 15. No, nor 
Herod neither: for I sent you to him, and behold, 
nothing worthy of death is done to him. 16. I 
will chastise him therefore, and release him. 17. 
Now of necessity he was to release them one 
upon the feast day. 18. But the whole multi¬ 
tude cried out at once, saying: Away with this 
man, and release unto us Barabbas. 19. Who for a 
certain sedition made in the city, and for murder, 
was cast into prison. ^ 


221 


REFLECTIONS. 

On Jesus before Annas^ Caiphas^ Pilate^ and 
Herod. 

The Saviour of the world, being through the 
treason of Judas, delivered into the hands of his 
enemies, soon felt the cruel efiects of their ma¬ 
lice, in the barbarous treatment they gave him. 
Binding him with cords like a criminal malefac¬ 
tor, they drag him from the garden of Gethsem- 
ani to Jerusalem: and carry him before Annas, 
father in-lavv to Caiphas, the high priest, where 
he underwent many indignities, hearing his divine 
doctrine ridiculed, his sacred person blasphemed, 
being treated as an impostor, and a seducer of 
the people. Under all these outrages, the meek 
and holy Jesus conducted himself with incompa¬ 
rable patience; and after having be n abused by 
Annas and the multitude, he was sent to the house 
of Caiphas, where the elders and scribes, his de¬ 
clared enemies, met to consult with each other 
how they might put him to death: nay, their ma¬ 
lice and fury transported them so far, as to treat 
him with the utmost contempt, thinking of nothing 
but how they might satiate their malice, and 
overwhelm him with affronts and indignities. It 
is not surprising therefore, that they should set 
aside all regular proceedings against him, not 
having so much as the shadow of a crime to lay 
to his charge, so innocent and holy had been his 
life, so blameless and circumspect his conduct: 
they were therefore obliged to bribe false wit¬ 
nesses to swear against him: wretches who, by 
the law, ought to have been stoned to death; but 
not agreeing in their testimony, nor proving any 
thing, the high priest asked our Saviour many 
questions, to which he made no reply. Caiphas 
then adjured him to declare, whether he was the 
Son of God: whereupon Christ, who remained 
silent in his own cause, when the honour of his 


22S 


eternal Father was concerned, spoke freely, and 
confessed he was. The impious high priest 
thought he had gained his point, and with a show 
of zeal, having rent his garments, he exclaimed: 
Blasphemyy no need of more witnesses: and having 
asked the rest what they thought, they immedi¬ 
ately concurred with him, and pronounced Jesus 
guilty of death 

No sooner had the high priest and elders pro¬ 
nounced this unjust sentence, than the furious 
rabble began to treat Jesus with all the cruelty 
their malice could invent. They spit upon his 
adorable face; they buffettedand blindfolded him, 
and then in mockery desired him tell them who 
it was that had struck him. The barbarous 
treatment of the outrageous and inhuman multi¬ 
tude, exceeds our comprehension. When we 
compare the greatness and majesty of our suffer¬ 
ing Saviour, with the baseness of those by whom 
he was thus injuriously treated, we cannot refrain 
from admiring in silence the incomparable pati¬ 
ence wherewith he suffered such ignominious af¬ 
fronts, and the exceeding love he had for those 
wretches who thus barbarously treated him. 
Like an innocent lamb amongst so many furious 
wolves, so was our most mild and meek Redeem¬ 
er among the multitude. He opened 7iot his 
mouthy and when he was reviled^ reviled not again. 

Though the high-priest and elders had thus 
pronounced Christ guilty of death, they could 
not execute the sentence, not having authority 
over life and death, that power being taken from 
them by the Romans, to whom they were sub¬ 
ject. But resolving to omit nothing in their pow¬ 
er, to accomplish their wicked designs, they 
consulted how they might prevail upon Pontius 
Pilate, the Roman President, to concur in their 
design; they represent him as a disturbcT of the 
public peace, a mover of sedition, and one who 
foroad tribute to be paid to CsBsar; and thus is 
tlije sovereign Judge of heaven and earth dragged 


22d 


before the profane tribunal of an earthly presi- 
dmt. 

Pilate, who had asked several questions of our 
blessed Lord, soon perceived (by the meekness 
of his behaviour, his admirable silence under 
such false accusations, and from the answers he 
gave him concerning Inith and his being a king,) 
that he was innocent of those heinous crimes the 
Jews had laid to his charge, was therefore de¬ 
sirous to set him at liberty; but the high priest 
and eiders were obstinate in their clamours 
against him, representing him as a seducer of the 
people, and as one who liad perverted them from 
Galilee to Jerusalem. At the mention of Galilee, 
which lay within the jurisdiction of Herod, Pi¬ 
late ordered that he should be carried before that 
prince, who was then at Jerusalem. Herod was 
rejoiced to see our Saviour brought before him, on 
account of the fame of his wonderful miracles, 
and expected he would work one in his presence; 
but his curiosity was disappointed, for Christ did 
not reply to his questions, or to the accusations of 
the Ingh priest. This made Herod consider him 
a fool, and as such, ordered him, in scorn and de- 
l ision, to be clothed in a white garment, and sent 
back to Pilate. The Roman governor would 
have been glad to exempt himself from any 
further interference witli Jesus, but could not 
The high priest, on the one liand, insisted upon 
his being condemned, as guilty of death; Pilate, 
on the other, as warmly maintained his innocence: 
but that he might release him, and at the same 
time satisfy them, he ottered to inflict some punish¬ 
ment upon him, but this would not satisfy them. 
He then proposed to release Jesus in honour of 
their paschal solemnity; but the Jews, at the in¬ 
stigation of the high priest, desired that Barabbas 
rather might be set at liberty, who was then in 
prison for sedition and murder. As for Jesus, 
they all cried out; Take him away, Crucify him, 
Crucify him. Thus a notorious criminal is pre¬ 
ferred before the innocent and holy Jesus; and 
11 


2S0 

the Author of Life unjustly required to be put to 
death. 

Doubtless this unworthy preference excites 
our indignation; but we should consider that 
whilst we condemn the Jews for preferring Ba- 
rabbas before Jesus, we pronounce a jvst sen¬ 
tence against ourselves. It is, alas! to be lament¬ 
ed that there are too many Christians who, 
though they conceive a just horror at the indig¬ 
nity (Offered our blessed Saviour, by a murderer 
being put in competition with him, and preferred 
before him, yet do not consider how' near a re¬ 
semblance there is in their own behaviour to that 
of the Jews. To some this may appear strange, 
What! Christians; who believe in, and adore 
Jesus Christ; who honour and compassionate his 
sufferings, to join w ith his cruel enemies, and cry 
out: JVot this man, but Barahbas. Yes, be as¬ 
tonished, O heavens! it is too true: for, what 
other choice does that wretched w^orldling make, 
whose desires and endeavours are continually oc¬ 
cupied in the acquisition of the riches and enjoy¬ 
ments of this life, for the obtaining of w-hich, he 
barters his conscience, his duly, and his title to 
the happiness of heaven.? The world is a Barah¬ 
bas, which he prefers before God. He cries 
out, not Jesus, nor his poverty, mortification, and 
self-denial; but Barahbas. Let me have the world, 
xcith its riches, its 2wmp,il.s liberties, and pleasures. 
The proud and ambitious, who prefer worldly 
honour and grandeur to the humility of the 2:0s- 
pcl, demand Barahbas and reject Jesus. The 
libertine, who is so much atiached to sensual 
pleasures, as to think of nothing but gratifying 
his inordinate desires, makes the same detestable 
choice. In a w'ord, wljoever offends God by 
preferring his temporal interest or pleasures to 
his duty, prefers Barahbas to Jesus Christ. Every 
sin w ilfully committed, involves us in the g'uiit of 
the Jews, or rather makes us infinitely more cul¬ 
pable. When they chose Barahbas before Christ, 
they did not believe him to be their promised 


^31 


Messias, wlio was come to redeem them, on the 
contrary, tliey looked upon him as a deceiver 
and impostor: but we believe him to be the Son 
of God; we acknowledge that he di^d for us, and 
yet, obstupessite Codi!!! we prefer the wretched 
and criminal enjoyments of the world before our 
duty to him. We will hazard the loss of God’s 
grace and favour, with its happy consequence, 
eternal happiness, rather than deny the irregular 
desires of our inordinate passions. Tims we pre¬ 
fer Barabbas to Jesus. Thus the world and sin 
triumph, and Christ is crucified. Ah, detestable 
choice! fatal preference! truly deserving the 
everlasting flames of hell! 

ASPIllATIONS. 

Adorable Saviour of mankind! with what 
confusion ought I to appear in thy presence, 
having so frequently rejected thee for the vain 
and trifling satisfactions of this world.'* How often 
have I refused to attend to thy divine invitations; 
and resisted the sweet inspirations of thy holy 
spirit.^* Thou desirest to reign in my heart, O 
sovereign Lord, the true life of my soul! and I 
have basely given the preference to sin. Ah! why 
am I not drowned in tearsHow dare I presume to 
appear in thy sight, after so vile a choice.^ Pardon 
ah! dear Lord, pardon the insults I have so fre¬ 
quently offered thee. O may that mercy which 
moved thee to suffer so much for my sake, incline 
thee to have compassion upon me. Behold me, O 
Lord, prostrate at thy sacred feet, renouncing all 
that I have hitherto loved more than thee. I once 
more resolve to continue faithful to thee, and im¬ 
plore the assistance of thy grace to keep these 
my resolutions inviolable. 

O Jesus, my adorable Saviour! what senti¬ 
ments of sympathy ought to fill my breast, when 
I consider thee thus injuriously dealt with.^ Thy 
whole life was one continued series of doing 
good, even to thy persecutors. Thou never 


232 


didst, nor was capable of committing an)^ crime, 
and yet thou art presented before Pontius Pilate, 
as a most flagitious offender. O my innocent 
Jesus! I sympathize with thee under this cruel 
treatment, to which thou didst so patiently sub¬ 
mit that thou mightest sutler the punishment due 
to my crimes. 

O the excessive love of my divine Redeemer! 
O Christ the Son of the living God! Thou, who 
art the sovereign Judge of the living and dead, 
didst permit thyself to be presented before the 
tribunal of Pontius Pilate! I adore, praise, and 
bless thee, for this thy gracious condescension. 
Ah! what confusion, to reflect tlmt 1 have refused 
to submit to thee, and been haughty and impatient 
under contradictions! O Jesus! make me by 
thy grace more conformable to thyself. Assist 
me to repress all irregular motions of corrupt na¬ 
ture, interior resentment and disquietude, that I 
may patiently submit to the dispensations of thy 
blessed will. Purify my heart from passion, and 
repining. Prostrate in spirit, I adore thee, O 
Lord! and resign myself, with all that I have, to¬ 
tally to thy will, that I may live only in thee and 
for thee during time and eternity. 



THURSDAY 

IN HOLY WEEK. 

The Gospelj John xiii. 1. 

Before the festival day of the pasch, Jesus 
knowing that his hour was come, that he should 
pass out of this world to the Father; having loved 
his own who were in the world, he loved them to 
the end. 2. And when supper was done (the 
devil having now put it into the heart of Judas, 
the son of bimon the Iscariot to betray him) 3. 
Knowing that the Father had given him all things 
into his hands, and that he came from God, and 


233 


goetli to God: 4. He riselh from supper, and 
layeth aside his garments: and having taken a 
towel, he girded himself. 5. After that hepour- 
eth water into a bason, and began to wash the 
feet of his disciples, and to wipe them with the 
towel wherewith he was girded. 6. He cometh 
therefore to Simon Peter. And Peter saith to 
him: Lord, dost thou wash my feet.? 7. Jesus 
answered, and said to him: What I do, thou 
knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter. 
8. Peter saith to him: Thou shalt never wash my 
feet. Jesus answered him: If I wash thee not, 
thou shalt have no part with me. 9. Simon Peter 
saith to him: Lord, not only my feet, but also my 
hands and my bead. 10. Jesus saith to him: He 
that is washed needeth not but to wash his feet, 
but is clean wholly. And you are clean but not 
all. 11. For he knew who he was that would 
betray him; therefore he said: You are not all 
clean. 12. Then after he had washed their feet, 
and taken his garments, being set down again, he 
said to them: Know you what I have done to you.? 
13. You call me. Master, and Lord: and you say 
well, for so I am. 14. If then I, being your Lord 
and Master, have washed your feet; you also ought 
to wash one another’s feet. 15. For I have given 
you an example, that as I have done to you, so 
you do also. 


REFLECTIONS. 

Behold what an admirable example of humili¬ 
ty and condescension the Son of God gives us in 
the gospel of this day! He stoops to the lowest 
office of a menial servant, and washes the feet of 
his disciples, even those of the wretched Judas, 
who had then formed the design of betraying him 
into the hands of his enemies. Although this may 
excite our astonishment, still we must not be so 
far lost in surprize as to overlook its typical sig¬ 
nification, in admonishing us, that whenever we 
are about to approach the altar to receive the 


2U 


adorable sacrament of Christ’s bod}’’ and blood, 
(that stupendous memorial of his love for mankind, 
the institution whereof, his church this day cele¬ 
brates) we should purify our souls from every 
stain of sin, and adorn them with the heavenly 
virtues of humility and charity. Having loved his 
own that were in the tvorld, he loved them to the end. 
JVor could he bequeath to them a greater proof of 
his love., than by leaving himself in the holy eucha- 
rist., to be the food and nourishment of the faithful 
to the consummation of the world. O stupendous 
love of our divine Redeemer, we may justly ex¬ 
claim with the royal Psalmist: The merciful and 
gracious Lord hath made a memorial of his won-^ 
derful works ; he hath given meat to them who fear 
him., (Psal. cx.) Yes, this is that mystery of love 
and goodness, in which we receive the body and 
blood of Christ; and by which our souls are 
nourished to eternal life. That Christ gives us 
his true body and blood, we cannot have a strong¬ 
er proof than his own words in the institution of 
this mystery. He assured the apostles that his 
body was jiesh indeed., and his blood drink indeed, 
(John vi.) and he told the Jews, that unless they 
eat his flesh, and drank his blood., they should not 
have life in them. After so plain and positive a 
declaration, to question or deny the real presence, 
must be the extreme of pride, arrogance, or pre~ 
judice. But without entering into unnecessary 
controversy to establish the truth of this adora¬ 
ble mystery, let us turn our thoughts to the con¬ 
sideration of the dispositions in which our souls 
ought to be, when we approach the altar to receive 
the sacred body and blood of Christ; what these 
are we may learn from the ceremony of our Sa¬ 
viour washing the feet of his disciples, as re¬ 
corded in this day’s gospel. 

The first is purity signified by our blessed 
Lord’s washing his apostles’ feet; St. Peter out of 
humility and respect for his divine Master, refus¬ 
ed, saying: Lord, thou shalt never icash my feet, 
Jesus answered, Unless I wash thee, thou shaU 


235 


have no share with me. Unless we are cleansed 
from all stains of sin, we must not expect any 
share in Jesus, nor to be worthy partakers of his 
body and blood. For this reason, St. Paul says: 
Whoever shall eat of this bread., or drink of the cha^ 
lice of the Lord unworthily., shall be guilty of the bo¬ 
dy and blood of the Lord. But let a man prove him¬ 
self; and so let him eat of that bread and drink 
of the chalice., (1 Cor. xi.) The purity then, 
wherewith we must approach the holy altar, con¬ 
sists, in cleansing our souls from all sin, by a 
sincere and hearty sorrow, in the waters of con¬ 
trition and repentance. It is for this purpose God 
has instituted the holy sacrament of penance, 
wherein the priests, the ministers of Christ, wash 
as it were, our feet, our hands, and our head. 
For if he ordained in the old law many legal 
purifications to be observed by those who came 
to offer sacrifice, with greater reason he requires 
that we should purify our souls, when we partake 
of the great sacrifice of the new law, of which 
all the ceremonious offerings of the Mosaic insti¬ 
tute, were but so many types and figures. But 
we must be careful to purify them effectually, and 
not deceive ourselves by mere exterior forms. 
For, though Judas had his feet washed by our 
Saviour, and was not made clean, so we also may, 
by going to confession, if we carry not thither a 
sincere contrition, appear to be washed, though 
not really made clean. Our contrition indeed 
may be called sincere, when it creates in us an 
abhorrence and detestation of sin; when we grieve 
for having offended so good a God, and when our 
sorrow produces a sincere resolution, not only 
not to offend him any more, but even to avoid all 
the occasions of sin. It is thus we should purify 
our souls, and make them, in some degree, fit 
habitations for the adorable Jesus, whose sacred 
body we receive in the blessed Sacrament. 

Another necessary disposition towards receiv¬ 
ing the blessed Sacrament worthily, is humility. 
This vve may learn from St. Peter, who, behold- 


136 


ing bis divine Master at his feet, to wash them, 
cries out with astonishment: Lord., dost thou 
wash my feet! And though our Saviour toid liim, he 
should hereafter know his reason for so doing, 
still he was not satisfied, but said: Lord^ thou 
shall never wash my feet. No, my dear and ado¬ 
rable Master, it is too degrading an office for thee 
who art Christ., the Son of the living God. (Matt, 
xvi.) It is rather my duty to wash thy sacred 
feet; for I am thy disciple, and thou art my Lord; 
I am thy servant, and thou art my Master; Thou 
shall never., no never wash my feet. These senti¬ 
ments of true humility, so worthy of the prince of 
the apostles, ought to occupy our thoughts when¬ 
ever we approach the altar. With a deep sense 
of our unw orthiness, let us then say with the Cen¬ 
turion: Lord., I am not worthy thou shouldst enter 
into my house. (Matt, viii.) Ah, yes. Lord, I am 
altogether unw orthy that thou shouldst enter into 
the miserable house of my sinful soul. But our 
humility on this occasion must be not only interior 
but also exterior. Interior, by sincere sentiments 
of our misery, baseness and nothingness; and ex¬ 
terior by a modest and devout demeanour that 
our interior humility may shew itself in the ex¬ 
terior, and the exterior be a mark of that which is 
in our interior. Thus disposed, w^e shall be pre¬ 
pared to receive him who rejects the proud, and 
gives his grace to the Immble. (James iv.) 

To purity and humility we must unite charity, 
if we desire to approach the sacred table as we 
ought. 1 have given you an example, says Jesus 
Christ to the apostles, after he had w ashed their 
feet, that a.s I have done to you, so you also may do 
the like. It w'as not only an example of humility, 
but also of love. A mutual charity, or love for 
each other, is what he particularly recommends 
to his disciples and followers. By this shall men 
know that you are my disciples, if you have love 
one for another. (John xiii.) Hence St. Paul calls 
love fulfilling of the law, (Horn, xiii.) And as 
the blessed eucharist is a standing memorial of 


237 


God’s love towards us, it is reasonable, that we 
should approach it with a sincere love both of 
God and our neighbour. Can we behold Jesus 
Christ in this adorable mystery of love, giving 
himself to us to be the food of our soulsCan 
we reflect upon all he has done for us, which is so 
wonderfully abridged, and represented in these 
holy mysteries, and not make him some return of 
love.^ Let such ingratitude and insensibility be 
far from the hearts and minds of Christians! Shall 
the flames of that divine love which burned in 
the heart of Jesus, not be able to warm our fro¬ 
zen breasts.^ Can we behold him daily immola¬ 
ting himself, and mystically dying for us on our 
altars, and not be consumed in the fire of a reci¬ 
procal ardent love.^ If love begets love—if we 
ought to love in proportion as we are beloved, 
how great ought our love be to him, who thus 
wonderfully manifests his love to us! Oh let us 
then love him with our whole hearts and minds; 
and with all our strength: for we can never love 
him more, nor so much as he deserves to be loved: 
and the best proofs we can give of our love, is to 
love our neighbour. Henc^ let all emotions of 
hatred, animosity, or ill-will towards another, 
vanish from the breasts of those who draw near 
the altar of love, since we can never be worthy 
to receive Jesus Christ in the holy sacrament, if 
we bear hatred and malice against any one, or re¬ 
fuse to pardon and be reconciled to those who 
have offended us. Hear the positive command 
of Jesus Christ: If thou offeredst thy gift at the 
altar^ and there shall remember that thy brother 
hath any thing against thee., leave there thy offer¬ 
ing before the altar^ and, first go to be reconciled 
to thy brotherj and then thou shall come and offer 
thy gift. (Matt, v.) Hence it appears evident, 
that we must be reconciled with the world, with 
our greatest enemies, at least on our parts, when 
we dispose ourselves to receive Jesus Christ in 
the holy eucharist. 

11 * 


With these dispositions, we shall he worthy to 
entertain the Son of God in the house of our soul. 
He will then communicate to us those graces by 
which we shall be enabled to increase in his love. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

Glory be to thee, O Jesus, the Saviour of the 
world! for that ineffable love and bounty thou 
hast shown us, in the institution of this adorable 
sacrament. I firmly believe that thou dost there¬ 
in give us thine own real body and blood. Excite 
in my soul, O Lord, a vehement longing after this 
heavenly food. Grant that I may always receive 
thee with an ardent affection, a profound humili¬ 
ty, and consummate purity of body and soul. O 
fire, ever burning and never consuming! inflame 
my heart with a love of thee. Thou earnest to 
bring fire upon the earth; cause it then, O Lord, 
to burn in me. O King of heaven and earth, 
thou art rich in mercy, but I am poor and needy. 
Supply all my wants out of the treasure of thy 
goodness. May thy love wholly possess my soul, 
that I may die to the jv^orld, and live only to thee, 
who for love of me, didst expire upon the cross. 
Let me never more prove ungrateful to thee, nor 
abuse thy mercy. O come now, and unite me 
so closely to thyself, that nothing may be able to 
separate me from thee, my God, and my All. 

O Jesus, God of infinite power, purity, and 
holiness! what am I but a miserable wretched 
sinner, a worm of the earth, dust and ashes.? 
And yet, sweet Saviour of my soul, thou vouch- 
safest to give thyself to me. Since thou art thus 
pleased to shew me thy love, grant that I may 
appear in thy presence, clothed with the nup¬ 
tial garment of charity. It is the earnest desire 
of my heart, O my God, when I come to receive 
thee at thy holy altar, to be totally inflamed with 
Jteraphic love and devotion. O fire! O flames of 
divine love, melt and consume my cold and te¬ 
pid heart. O that I could appear in thy presence. 


2S9 


divine Jesus, and kneel before thee, with as much 
fervour as is felt hy the cherubim, seraphim, and 
all the blessed spirits of heaven. 

How adorable are thy counsels, O Lord! how 
endearing the ways of thy love! Thou comest, 
O ocean of mercy! fountain of living waters! to 
overflow the earth with the riches of thy bounty. 
Water, I beseech thee, the dry and barren soil of 
my heart. Open those cataracts, and let the 
sweet streams of thy grace flow abundantly, and 
make the sterile land of my soul fruitful m good 
works. O true and eternal happiness, come and 
unite me so closely to thyself, that nothing may 
be able to separate me from thee. Transform 
me totally into thyself, that I may live, not I, but 
thou in me, and I in thee. 


GOOD FRIDAY, 

The Gospel, or passion, John, xix. 1. 

Then therefore Pilate took Jesus and scourged 
him. 2. And the soldiers platting a crown of 
thorns, put it upon his head: and they put on 
him a purple garment. 3. And they came to him 
and said: Hail King of the Jews: and they gave 
him blows. 4. Pilate therefore went forth again, 
and saith to them: Behold I bring him forth to 
you, that you may know that I find no 
cause in him. 5. (So Jesus came forth hearing 
the crown of thorns, and the purple garment.) 
And he saith to them: Behold the man. 6. When 
the chief priests therefore and the officers had 
seen him, they cried out, saying: Crucify him, 
crucify him. Pilate saith to them: Take him 
you, and crucify him: for I find no cause in him. 
7. The Jews answered him: We have a law; 
and according to the law he ought to die, because 
he made himself the Son of God. 8. When Pi¬ 
late, therefore, had heard this saying, he feared 


240 


the more. 9. And he entered into the hall again ; 
and he said to Jesus: Whence art thou? But Je¬ 
sus gave him no answer, 10. Pilate therefore 
saith to him: speakest thou not to me? knowest 
thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and 
I have power to release thee. 11. Jesus answ^er- 
ed: Thou shouldest not have any power against 
me, unless it w^ere given thee from above. There¬ 
fore he that delivered me to thee, hath the great¬ 
er sin. 12. And from thenceforth Pilate sought 
to release him. But the Jew’^s cried out, saying: 
If thou release this man, thou art not CaBar’s 
friend. For w^hosoever maketh himself a king, 
speaketh against Caesar. 13. Now when Pi¬ 
late had heard these wwds, he brought Jesus 
forth; and sat down in the judgment-seat, in the 
place that is called Lithostrotos, and in Hebrew, 
Gabbatha. 14. And it w^as the Parasceve of the 
pasch about the sixth hour, and he saith to the 
Jews: Behold your king: 15. But they cried out: 
Away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith to 
them: Shall 1 crucify your king? The chief 
priests answ^ered: We have no king but Caesar. 
16. Then therefore he delivered him to them to 
be crucified. And they took Jesus and led him 
forth. 17. And bearing his own cross he went 
forth to that place w^hich is called Calvary, but in 
Hebrew’ Golgotha. 18. Where they crucified 
him and with him two others, one on each side, 
and Jesus in the midst. 

REFLECTIONS, 

On Jesus scourged and crucified. 

The spectacle which this day presents itself 
as the subject of our pious thoughts, is of such a 
nature, as to demand our tears rather than our 
words: it is better expressed by the tender emo¬ 
tions of the heart, than the eloquence of the 
tongue: in a w^ord, it may be contemplated on in 
silence, though not described in the most pithy 


2U 


or energetic language: such are the suflerings and 
death of our blessed Redeemer. Having in the 
course of this holy week, accompanied him by 
devout meditation through the various stages of 
his passion, we are at length come to the last 
scene, wherein we behold him tmjustly condemn¬ 
ed to an ignondniovs death. This cruel sentence 
was no sooner pronounced than executed by the 
Jews, with the most aggravating circumstances 
of scorn and barbarity, which the church, his 
afflicted spouse, represents to us in aliv^ely man¬ 
ner, by the mournful ceremonies of this day’s 
solemn otiice. With her, let us accompany 
Jesus, bearing his cross to mount Calvary, wliere 
he expires amidst those bitter torments which his 
exquisite love for us caused him to suffer. But 
let us first consider what passed at the Pretorian- 
hall, and the tribunal of Pilate, whitlier the high 
priests had draped him in fetters, like a notori¬ 
ous malefactor. Here having laid many grievous 
crimes to his charge, his malicious enemies were 
most anxious that sentence of death should be pro¬ 
nounced against him. But Pilate, convinced of 
his innocence, and perceiving their accusations 
against him to have no other foundation than in en¬ 
vy and malice, was desirous of giving him his 
liberty. This he might have done, in quality of 
judge, and by virtue of that supreme power with 
which he was invested: but being a weak man, 
his dread of incurring the displeasure of the chief 
priests on the one hand, and his desire of libera¬ 
ting the innocent Jesus on the other, induced him 
to have recourse to the Ibllowing expedient. 
Knowing that it was customary with the Jews to 
set a criminal at liberty at the solemnity of the 
passover, he gave them their choice of Jesus 
or Barabbas, in the hope they would give the 
preference to the former as the latter had been 
convicted of sedition and murder, but here he 
found himself deceived; not this man, exclaim¬ 
ed they, but Barabbas. When he asked what 
he should do with Jesus, they cried out Cm- 


2iS 


mfij him, crucify him. To assuage, in some 
measi!T;e, their fury, Pilate gave orders lhai Je¬ 
sus should be scourged. Thus our attention is 
called to the Pretorian-hall, where we shall see 
these OJ ders executed with the utmost barbarity. 

The holy evangelists say no more of this cruel 
flagellation, than that Jesus was scourged. Let 
us imitate their silence, and speak only by our 
tears, of the tragic scene; let us, 1 say, draw a 
veil over it, and revolve in our minds what our 
tongues cannot express. We may represent him 
to our thoughts sti ipped of his clothes, and ex¬ 
posed naked to the view of an insolent soldiery, 
who binding him to a pillar, call together the 
whole cohort, to discharge upon his tender and 
delicate body, the severest stripes their rage and 
malice could inspire. Here we may behold the 
body of our adorable Saviour so torn by whips 
and scourges as to appear one entire wound from 
head to feet. We may view this holy victim, 
deluged in his own blood; and once more leave 
that to our hearts, which our tongues cannot ex¬ 
press, and speak only by our compassionate sighs 
and tears; or, if we must speak, let it be in the 
words of Caiphas to the Jews: JVhat do you 
think? (Matt, xxvi.) Let every one put this 
question to himself: What do you think of Jesus 
in this sad condition.^ of Jesus thus covered 
with blood and w’^ounds.^ Can you after such a 
sight, ever offend him.? canyon refuse him all the 
affections of your heart.? 

This cruel treatment however, barbarous as it 
was in the extreme, did not satisfy the brutality 
of these butchers; for, having exhausted them¬ 
selves with scourging our Saviour, they exceed 
their orders, and invent fresh torments for him. 
Platting a crown of sharp thorns, they place it 
upon his sacred head, and put him to the most 
exquisite pain, by forcing the prickles into his 
flesh; and to satiate their cruelty, they add 
scorn and derision to their barbarity. They 
clothe him in an old purple garment, put a reed 


into his hands for a sceptre, and kneeling do\Tii 
in mockery, say to him Hail kin^ of the Jews? 
Having thus abused him, they drag him from 
the hall to Pilate, who brought him forth in that 
sad condition, and presented him to the Jews, 
saying: Behold the man! But far from being 
moved with compassion, they cried out: Crucify 
him, crucify him. Pilate still willing to save 
him, says to them: shall I crucify your king? 
They reply. We have no king but Cccsar. If 
thou lettest this man go, thou art not Cccar^s 
friend. Plainly intimating, that if he released 
our Saviour, they would accuse him at Rome, for 
favouring the enemies of the Emperor. Pilate 
apprehensive of incurring the displeasure of Cae¬ 
sar, consents to their desire: and from human 
respect commits an act of the highest injustice. 
He acknowledged the innocence of Jesus, by say¬ 
ing he found no fault in him, and yet condemns 
him to be crucified. What a lively picture of hu¬ 
man weakness! of a criminal attachment to pre¬ 
sent interest! to promote which, how many bar¬ 
ter their consciences, and violate all the rules of 
equity and justice. 

The Son of God being thus delivered up to the 
will of his merciless enemies, they hurry him 
from the president’s house, and having a cross 
prepared, they put it upon his weak and wound¬ 
ed shoulders, and thus lead him out of Jerusalem 
to be crucified. The meek Jesus patiently sub¬ 
mits to bear the heavy load, and like another Isaac, 
carrying the wood whereon he was to be sacri¬ 
ficed, he exerts the little strength he had left, and 
proceeds, attended by the chief-priests and sol¬ 
diers; but exhausted from the blood he had lost by 
the scourging at the pillar, he faints by the way, and 
sinks beneath his heavy burthen. The barbarous 
Jews urge him to go on, but finding him unable, 
they oblige Simon the Cyrenean to help him to 
carry the cross; not from compassion for Jesus 
Christ, but apprehensive he should die before 
he had sufi’ered the torments they had designed to 


2U 


inflict upon him. At length, having arrived at 
mount Calvary, they strip him of his clothes, 
and fasten him to the cross, driving large rough 
nails through his hands and feet; then raising up 
the cross, and permitting it to tall into the hole 
made in the ground for its reception, the violence 
of the shock made his wounds bleed afresh, and 
caused him more exquisite pain than he had hi¬ 
therto undergone. In this manner did the Sa¬ 
viour ot the world hang for the space of ilnee 
hours, suOering the most cruel torments, expo¬ 
sed naked to the sharp air, and bitter reproaches 
of his enemies, who, not content with the cruelty 
they had exercised upon his body, endeavour by 
their horrid blasphemies, insults and mockery, 
torment and wound his lioly soul; reproaching 
him with having called himself the Son of God, 
and desiring him to descend from the cross, that 
they might believe in him. 

In alfliction, it is a consolation to to have some 
friends to compassionate our sufferings; but how 
few did Jesus find! His disciples and followers 
had forsaken him. He saw indeed his virgin mo- 
her, his beloved disciple, and Mary Magdalen, 
standing by his cross; but the sight of them, over¬ 
whelmed with grief, only tended to increase his 
sorrow. It is some consolation to be pitied by 
those who suflhr with us; but our blessed Sa¬ 
viour was reviled and blasphemed by those who 
were crucified with him. Add to this, that inte¬ 
rior desolation which forced him to exclaim: My 
Gody my God^ why hast thou forsaken me, (Matt, 
xxvi.): not that the divinity had abandoned the 
humanity of Jesus Christ, for being hypostati- 
cally united thereto, he always enjoyed the bea¬ 
tific vison; but because he was at that time de¬ 
prived of those interior consolations, which might 
afford him comfort and support under those in¬ 
explicable sufferings, which h^ bore with inim¬ 
itable patience. Through a love of those for 
whom he cried out: Sitio, I thirst, (John xix.) 
expressing thereby, not only his great corporsd 


245 


thirst, and the pair, it gave him, but also his 
much greater spiritual thirst for tlie salvation of 
maukiiid. With the same ardour of love for sin¬ 
ners, he again cried out: Consiimmatum est. (Yes, 
blessed Jesus! the glorious and arduous work of 
man'’s redemption is finished.) And having add¬ 
ed, Father into thy hands / commend my spirit^ 
he bowed down his head, and expired. Tlius died 
the Author of Life, the Redeemer of mankind, 
the Son of the living God, the Prince of peace, 
the Father of the world to come, our comforter, 
our help, and our only hope. Thus, like a good 
shepherd, did he fulfil his promise: / lay down 
my life for my sheep^ (John x.) Thus did he 
die for us, and to teach us to die as he did, with 
submission and resignation to the will of God, 
and restore into the hands of our Creator, that 
soul which he gave us. O may my soul die the 
death of the just., and may my last end be like 
his. (Numb, xxiii.) 

Having thus beheld the various cruel torments 
our blessed Lord was pleased to suffer for us, 
what sentiments ought the consideration of them 
produce in our hearts.^ What are the practi¬ 
cal lessons we should learn from his passion, and 
what should be the fruit of our meditations on the 
sufferings of the Son of God? These are the 
objects which the Church has in view, by laying 
before us the mysteries of this holy time. Let 
us then cast our eyes upon what we have already 
viewed, and attentively consider what we should 
learn from every circumstance of our Saviour’s 
passion. From his wonderful silence under the 
false accusations of his enemies, at the judgment- 
seat of Pilate, we learn to be patient arid meek 
under all provocations and injuries, so as not to 
be overcome by anger and resentment, or by any 
motions of corrupt nature prompting us to re¬ 
venge. If we would defend ourselves against 
those who would do us an injury, let it be with 
the spirit of mildness and charity^ and no further 
than justice and equity may require. To give 


2i6 


way to passion upon every slight contradiction oi* 
word, spoken perhaps through inadvertency and 
without malice, is lar from that meekness and pa¬ 
tience, of which our blessed Lord has set us the 
example. From the conduct of Pilate in condemn¬ 
ing Jesus Christ unjustly, and against his own 
conscience, we know the direful effects of being 
biassed by, or suffering temporal interest to pre¬ 
vail over our duty. At first he seemed determin¬ 
ed to set Jesus at liberty, but when the chief 
priests threatened to complain of him to the em¬ 
peror, he, through fear of losing the favour of his 
prince, gave his consent to their most cruel and 
unjust demand. Ah! it were to be wished that he 
had no followers; but, alas! there are too many, 
who when their private interest is not concerned, 
seem zealous enough for truth and justice, but 
when any advantage is to be obtained, instantly 
sacrifice conscience, honour, equity and truth to 
this idol, and basely give up what they before 
seemed so strenuously to defend; thereby imita¬ 
ting Pilate, who condemned Jesus to be crucified, 
through fear of forfeiting the friendship of Caisar; 
but, how contrary is this to the spirit of the gos¬ 
pel, and how can such persons call themselves 
Christians, or followers of Christ! We are also 
taught (from the charity of Jesus in praying for 
those who so barbarously crucified him) that di¬ 
vine lesson, of praying for those who injure and 
persecute us; and from his recommending his 
spirit into the hands of his heavenly Father, we 
are admonished to dedicate our last moments en¬ 
tirely to God, as the ultimate end of all our de¬ 
sires. Let us then practice these salutary lessons 
which Christ reads to us from the cross: let him 
be the model of all our actions: let it be our only 
care to live in his fear, and then we shall, most 
assuredly, die in his favour. 

God said to Moses: Work according to the 
pattervi which was given thee in the mount, (Exod. 
xxi. The pattern which we must imitate in con¬ 
verting our souls into the mystical temples of the 




living God, is here set before us on the mount of 
Calvary. There we behold Jesus, the author 
and finisher of our faith, undergoing the torments 
of the cross, and despising its shame; and now 
we contemplate him sitting at the right hand of 
his eternal Father. Let Jesus then he the model 
of all our actions: and, considering what he has 
suifered to make atonement for our sins, let us 
learn to bewail them with the most sincere com¬ 
punction. Let his sacred passion excite in us an 
extreme horror of what is so displeasing to God, 
and which he punished so rigorously in the per¬ 
son of his beloved Son. Ah! if the view of 
those torments our divine Redeemer suffered, ex¬ 
cites in us a just abhorrence of the cruelty of the 
Jews, is it possible that we should at the same 
time take part with, or rather exceed them in 
their cruelty, by renewing his sufferings, tram¬ 
pling on his sacred blood, and crucifying him 
again, which we in reality do as often as we wil¬ 
fully commit sin.^ Being therefore infinitely more 
culpable than they were, we must expect a more 
severe punishment: but if as Good Christians, 
we walk in the observance of what he commands; 
if we follow him in the narr 0 w path of his holy 
cross, it will lead us to eternal life; and thus by 
participating in his sufferings here, we shall be¬ 
come partakers of his glory hereafter. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

Dear Redeemer of my soul! who sufferedst 
90 many and cruel torments for my sake! what 
return of praise and thanksgiving can I make, 
adequate to the immensity of thy love.^ O may 
the recollection thereof never be obliterated from 
my memory: may I never, forget that thou didst 
die for me, that I might effectually die to sin, to 
the world, its vanities and follies, and all affec¬ 
tion to creatures. Thou, O sweet and amiable 
Saviour! hast shewn thyself a truly good shep¬ 
herd, in giving thy life for thy sheep. Have mer- 


2 IS 


cy therefore on me, O my God, and grant that in 
all things 1 may truly please thee, and al all times 
be willhig to suffer and lay down my life for thy 
sake. O my crucified Jesus! I adore thy sacred 
wounds, and humbly beg thou wouldst inflame 
my heart with thy love. O sweetness of my 
heart, and life of my soul! let me burn and con¬ 
sume in flames of a most ardent love. Transform 
me totally into thyself, O my Lord, my God, and 
my all! 

Hail, sweet Jesus! may praise, honour, and 
glory be given thee, O Christ, who vouchsafedst 
to suffer such cruel torments from thy creatures! 
I adore thee, O God of love! God of patience, 
mercy and goodness! I adore thee,covered with 
wounds; dying in torments; insulted, mocked, 
and derided by thy cruel and implacable enemies, 
who not content with having so barbarously treat¬ 
ed thy sacred body, seek by horrid blasphemies 
and injurious reproaches, to afflict and torment 
thy sacred soul. Thou who art the eternal truth, 
art mocked as an impostor. They bid thee come 
down from the cross and save thyself, who in an 
instant couldst destroy the whole fabric of the 
universe. Ah, wretches! it is love—not your 
massy nails—that fixes Jesus on the cross. It 
was love that crucified him, for without it, all 
your power over him had been in vain. 

Oadorable Redeemer! the life of my soul! my 
Lord and my God! I am lost in the contemplation 
of such miracles of love and goodness. How 
great is thy love! How invincible thy patience! 
How insatiable is thy desire of suffering! Not 
content to love me with an infinite love, thou 
wouldst suffer infinite torments for me. Am 1 
not therefore obliged, O Lord, to return love for 
love, by suffering for, and with thee.^ I desire to 
love thee beyond measure, and to suffer whatever 
thou shalt please to ordain or permit. How won¬ 
derful, O Lord, is the force of thy love! Thou 
didst not think three hours too long to hang on 
the cross under the most excruciating torments 


219 


for our solvation, flint in tliy sufferings we might 
find consolation, and a remedy for all our ev iJs. 
Whilst suspended on the cross, every moment 
brings with it an aggravation of thy torments, by 
the weight of thy sacred body, which gradually 
oc(*asions tfie wounds of tliy liands and feel to 
open still wider and wider: but love supports 
thee under all. Thy cruel enemies insult thee, 
every thing contributes to increase thy pain, and 
we only, O boundless love! reap the benefit and 
advantage of thy sufterings. O thou divine and 
innocc'iit lamb of God! thou reservest to thyself 
all the hitterness of thy cross, and desirest that it 
should be to me the source of all sweetness and 
deliglds. O may it be my health and comfort 
here, and my eternal felicity hereafter. 

HOLY SATURDAY. 

The Gospel, Matt, xxviii. I. 

And in the end of the sabbath when it began to 
dawn towaids the first day of the w^eek, came 
Mary Magdalen, and the other Mary to see the 
sepulchre. 2. And behold there was a great 
earthquake. For an angel of the Lord descend¬ 
ed from heaven: and coming, rolled back the 
stone, and sat upon it: 3. And his countenance 
was as lightning, and his raiment as snow. 4. 
And for fear of him the guards were struck with 
terror, and became as dead men. 5. And the an¬ 
gel answering said to the woman: Fear not you: 
for 1 know that you seek Jesus wlio was crucifi¬ 
ed. 6. He is not here, for he is risen, as he said. 
Come, and see the place where tlie Lord was 
laid. 7. And going quickly, tell ye his disciples 
that he is risen: and behold he will go before you 
into Galilee: there you shall see him. Lo I have 
foretold it to you. 


250 


REFLECTIONS. 

The tragical scene of the sufferings and pas¬ 
sion of our blessed Saviour being now closed, a 
prospect of a bright and glorious nature opens to 
our view. Having shed our pious tears for tlie 
crucifixion of Jesus, and seen him laid in his se¬ 
pulchre; the church now invites us to repair 
thillicr with the devout women, that, with them, 
we may rejoice at the glorious tidings of his re¬ 
surrection. He is not here, for he has riseri as he 
said, Let us go in spirit, and view the place 
where the Lord was laid. An angel of the Lord 
has descended and rolled away the stone from 
the door of the monument, through fear of w'hom, 
tlie guards were struck with terror, and became 
like dead men. But to St. Mary Magdalen and 
the other Mary, he said; Fear not, I know you 
seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for 
he is risen, as he said. Come and see the place 
where the Lord was laid. The joy of these holy 
women at hearing this, was doubtless excessive; 
their pious transports may be easil}^ conceived, 
when, on entering the monument, the}" found what 
the angel had said was true. It is no wonder 
then that they hastened back to tell the apostles 
that Christ was risen. Their love was communi¬ 
cative, and burned with a sacred impatience that 
others should partake of the favour they had re¬ 
ceived. 

Having, for some days past, indulged our de¬ 
votion by meditating on the doleful mystei'ies of 
the death of Jesus, let us now prejiare to celebrate 
the joyful event of his glorious resurrection; and 
in order to render this duty the more acceptable 
to him, let us learn from the conduct of the holy 
W’omen,what our dispositions should be, and how 
we ought to receive the glad tidings of the resur¬ 
rection of our Saviour from the dead. St. JMary 
Magdalen and the other Mary went, early in the 
morning of the sabbath, to the sepulchre, bewailing 


251 


the loss of their dear and adorable Master^ and 
carried pcrlumes and precious ointment with them, 
to anoint his holy body. They went betimes, 
and their early devotion was recompensed with 
liearin^ before the apostles, the joyful tidings 
tliat Christ w’as risen. JVoihing is more ‘pleasing 
to Godj than a prompt and early devotion. Zeal 
and fervour are the two wings, by which our 
souls are raised up to God: but lukewarmness and 
indifference are as weights attached to our feet, 
to keep us down. Had Magdalen, and the other 
Mary, consulted their ease, and deferred going to 
the sepulchre till it became later in the day, 
they had lost the happiness they enjoyed of being 
told by an angel that Christ was risen. Their 
fervour and devotion is therefore proposed for 
our imitation, that with them we may repair to 
the monument of Jesus; and although we cannot 
expect, like them, to hear from the mouth of an 
angel that Christ is risen, yet we may hear it 
from the voice of the church, who invites us at 
this holy time to join in her repeated alleluias, and 
joyful acclamations, in testimony of our gratitude 
for the blessings we now commemorate. Yes, 
Christ is risen, and we also must rise with him. 
We must rise from the death of sin, to a life of 
righteousness; from the grave of lukewarmness 
and indifference, to a life of zeal and fervour: and 
we must first go, mourning and weeping.^ like the 
devout women., to the sepulchre of Jesus. Their 
hearts were oppressed with grief for the death of 
Christ; let ns also mourn with them for our sins, 
which were the cause of his suffierings, and not 
the Jews, the nails, nor the cross, which were 
the only instruments thereof: he died to make atone¬ 
ment for our sins ; he 'rose again for our justifica- 
cation, (Rom. xiv.) that we might also rise with 
him. To mourn for our sins, is the necessary 
disposition towards our spiritual resurrection, 
whereby we shall be enabled to say: / live, no 
not /, but Christ in ‘me. (Gal. ii.j This sorrow 
is more especially requisite at this holy time. 


252 


%vhm we otfght to hiiry all our past sins, by a good 
confession in ike grave of Jesus; and by a worthy 
communion, rise with him to a new life, other\vi.-»e 
we can never comply with our Easter oblij^ation. 
Let us not tl»en deceive ourselves: the true crite¬ 
rion to know whether our sorrow for sin be sin¬ 
cere, is, when we not only make Jinn purposes of 
amendment, but sincerely endeavour to keep them. 
When our future care of avoiding the occasions 
of sin, proves that we hold it in just abhorrence; 
and when by a real and visible change, we make 
it appear that we are truly risen. 

This change from a vicious to a virtuous course 
of life, is signified by the perfumes the devout 
women carried with them to the monument. 
They not only went to shed tears at the grave of 
Jesus, but also carried with them precious oint¬ 
ments to anoint his sacred body. Thus, in dis¬ 
posing ourselves to celebrate the festival of Christ’s 
resurrection, we must not only be sorry for our 
sins, the cause of his death and sufierings; but this 
sorrow, must be also accompanied with the sweet 
perfumes of love and charity towards him and all 
mankind. Let us then, by works of mercy, anoint 
his sacred members, since he assures us, that what 
we do to the poor, is done unto him, (J[Jatt. xxv.) 
This charity towards our neighbour will be the 
best proof of our love to God, who has done so 
much for the lov^e of us; and if the consideration 
of the suiferings of Jesus Christ be not able to 
produce this etlect, our hearts may be said to be 
more insensible than the rocks, which burst asun¬ 
der at his expiring on the cross. In a word, the 
approaching sofemnity will be of no advantage to 
those who, instead of rising wdth Christ, remain 
dead in sin; strangers to a new life, and still under 
the power of the devil. Strange infatuation! to 
prefer chains and slavery to liberty and freedom! 

ASPIRATIONS. 

Deliver me, O Lord, from such extraordinary 
folly; from such base ingratitude towards thee. 


25S 


O may I now sei*iously prepare myself to celebrate 
the triumphs of thy glorious resurrection, and 
bear a part in thy victory over sin and death! 
May I bury all my past sins in thy sacred grave, 
and rise with thee to a new life. May I weep 
and mourn for having been the cause of thy suf¬ 
ferings. Let my sorrow be converted into joy, 
on thy resurrection from the dead, by which thou 
hast perfected the glorious work of our redemption. 
Blessed for ever be thy name, dear Redeemer of 
mankind, for all that thou hast done, and suffered 
for us. I desire, by loving thee, to make thee a 
grateful return; and what, O Lord, can be more 
deserving my love than thyself.^^ O may no crea¬ 
ture ever rival thee in my heart. O may I love 
thee most ardently., and sei've thee most faithfully 
to the last moment of my life. 

This is the least return I can make thee, O dear 
Redeemer of mankind! and what thou mayest 
justly expect from me. Thou hast given thy life 
for my sake, and by thy precious death hast pur¬ 
chased for m^ eternal happiness. O boundless 
love! excessive goodness! Ah! what return can 
I make thee dearest Jesus! what grateful sacri¬ 
fice of praise and thanksgiving shall I now offer 
thee? My whole heart, nay, my whole being is 
but a poor tribute of gratitude to thy infinite boun¬ 
ty and goodness. Yet, accept, O dearest Lord, 
all that I am and have. May the sacred merits 
of thy bitter passion and death recommend me to 
thee, and may I from this moment, and for ever, 
be totally thine. 

—©QO— 


EASTER SUNDAY. 

The Gospel, Mark xvi. 1. 

And when the sabbath was past, Mary Mag¬ 
dalen and Mary the mother of James and Salome 
bought sweet spices, that coming they might 

12 


254 


anoint Jesus. 2. And very early in tlie morning 
of the first day of tlie week, they come to the 
sepulchre, the sun being now risen. 3. And they 
said one to another: Who shall roll us back the 
stone from the door of the sepulchre? 4. And 
looking, they saw the stone rolled back. For it 
was very great. 5. And entering into the se¬ 
pulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the 
right side, clothed with a white robe: and they 
were astonished. 6. And he saith to them: Be 
not affrighted; you seek Jesus of Nazareth, who 
was crucified: he is risen, he is not heie, behold 
the place where they laid him. 7. But go tell 
his disciples, and Peter, that he goeth before you 
into Galilee; there you shall see him, as he told 
you. 


REFLECTIONS. 

Wkat the angel said to the holy women, is 
now declared by the church to ail the faithful, 
Christ is risen. We are not now called upon, 
with an Ecce Homo., to behold the Son of God 
covered with blood and wounds, clothed with a 
purple garment and crowned with thorns; hut lo 
admire him vested in the resplendent robes of glo¬ 
ry and immorlality; rising tVom the grave, by 
virtue of his divine power; passing through the 
stone placed before the monument, and filling 
heaven and earth with joy at his triumphant re¬ 
surrection. Having lain in the grave to prove 
himself to have been truly man., and really dead^ 
he now rises by a power udiicJi shetes him to be 
truly God. Yes Christ is risen, and by his re-, 
surrection has established this truth, that we also 
shall one day rise again: and as he, by his resurrec¬ 
tion, obtained a new and glorious life, so we al¬ 
so shall rise to a glorious immortality, provided 
. we raise no obstacles in the way. As the resur¬ 
rection of Christ, is a certain pledge of the rc- 
surrection.pf our bodies to a state of immortality 
'.hereafter, V*(the most coyisoling article of our 


255 


creed) we have great reason to rejoice; for as 
the apostle St. Paul observes, If there is no re¬ 
surrection of the dead^ neither is Christ risen 
agaiti. And if Christ hath not risen again., our 
proceeding is vain. But now Christ hath risen from 
the dead, the first fndts of those who have slept. 
For by man indeed came death, and by man the re¬ 
surrection from the dead. And as in Adam all die, 
so in Christ all shall be raised to life again. (I. 
Cor. XV.) O happy effect of Christ’s resurrection, 
which enables us to cry out: O death ichere is thy 
sting? O gravel where is thy victory? Christ is 
risen; yes, he is risen for our justification, that 
wc also may rise with him to glory. But we 
must first rise to a new and spiritual life, which 
alone can prepare us for a life of glory. With¬ 
out thus rising spiritually from sin, we may cele¬ 
brate the annual festival of our Lord’s resurrec¬ 
tion, and unite with the church in her repeated 
alleluias; but if we proceed no further we shall 
reap no benefit. Let us not then confine our de¬ 
votion at this season to a mere outward parade, 
(although it is certainly proper that we should 
on the present occasion testify our gratitude, for 
the blessings we commemorate, with all the re¬ 
ligious pomp and magnificence of which we are 
capable, and that the church should now put on 
her best attire to celebrate the resurrection of her 
divine Spouse) but we must be careful to add, 
the much more valuable interior disposition of the 
heart, and to the resurrection of Jesus Christ join 
that of our own, which ought to be modelled af¬ 
ter his; for, according to the resemblance our 
spiritual resurrection bears to his rising from the 
grave, so far, and no further will it be to our ad¬ 
vantage. The circumstances of Christ’s resur¬ 
rection, and how we are to imitate it, will be a 
proper subject for our pious reflections. 

Two circumstances present themselves to our 
thoughts on the resurrection of Jesus Christ: 
first that the life he then entered upon was a true 
and real life; and secondly that it was constant 


256 


§Lnd eternal. It was a true and real life. The 
Lord is truly risen., (Luke xxiv .) It was constant and 
eternal. Christ now dies no more. Death has no 
more dominion over him. Such must be our spi¬ 
ritual resurrection. We must make it evident 
that we are truly risen. The Lord is truly risen^ 
and has appeared to Simon. To rise and not 
make our resurrection apparent, is truly paradox¬ 
ical; but to appear to have risen, whilst we are 
still dead, is an hypocritical illusion. Our resur¬ 
rection must also be permanent., for., having once 
risen ice must never fall or die again. 

Christ, when he rose from the grave, re-as¬ 
sumed his natural body, the same in which he 
was crucified; and it was in this, his proper bo¬ 
dy that he appeared to his disciples, when he 
desired them touch and feel him, that they might 
be convinced he had flesh and bones, and w^as no 
spirit or phantom: nay, to satisfy the incredulity 
of St. Thomas, he bid him put his hand into the 
wound of his side, and into the marks in his hands 
and feet. This reality of our Lord’s corporal 
resurrection, must be the model of our spiritual 
revival. We must truly and really rise to a new 
life, and not deceive ourselves or others by false 
appearances. As the body of Christ before his 
passion, was subject to cold and heat, hunger and 
thirst, labour and fatigue; but after his resurrec¬ 
tion, became impassable, and incapable of suffer¬ 
ing; so we, after our spiritual resurrection, must 
be free from those predominant passions, and evil 
habits to which we w'^ere before subject, that it 
may be truly said of us: behold, such a one is 
risen and quite changed. He no longer commits 
those sins to which he w^as heretofore subject. 
He is no more addicted to swearing, lying, drunk¬ 
enness, passion, &c. He is not as heretofore, 
cold, indifferent, careless, or negligent in the 
service of God, and the business of salvation. He 
no longer bears malice, nor seeks revenge; he 
is no longer hard-hearted nor uncharitable to the 
poor. Why sol? Because he is risen with Christ.^ 


257 


and entering upon a new life; he is now become 
sober and regular in his conciuct, sincere, fervent, 
and devout, charitable to his neighbours, zealous 
in the service of God, and earnest in the great 
affair of his salvation. Ah! this is the happy ef¬ 
fect of a spiritual resurrection wherein we must 
shew a new life, and make it obvious that we are 
truly risen Happy those Christians, who hij thus 
rising with Chnst^ not only become truly parta¬ 
kers of the solemnity of this time, but receive a 
pledge mid assurance of a glorious resurrection to 
eternal life. 

There is another circumstance attending the 
resurrection of our blessed Lord; which de¬ 
mands our consideration, that the life which he en¬ 
tered upon after he arose from the grave, was last¬ 
ing and permanent. Death had no more dominion 
over him. Such must be our life after our spiritual 
resurrection: for what advantage will it be to us 
to appear as if spiritually risen, if we relapse 
into those criminal habits, and are again subject 
to the dominion of sin.^ Having through the 
grace of God, recovered our liberty, we must 
maintain our freedom, and by constancy and per¬ 
severance in the service of God, nourish the spi¬ 
ritual life we have received; to effect this, we must 
use those means which the goodness of God has 
provided for our security. We must not be sa¬ 
tisfied with an ordinary devotion, or general pro¬ 
mises of amendment of our lives, w hich are soon 
obliterated from our memories. No, the only way 
to secure a perseverance in this newness of life, 
is to follow the advice of St. Paul: If you be ri¬ 
sen with Christ, seek the things that are above, 
where Chnst is sitting on the right hand of God: 
mind the things that are above, not the things that 
are upon earth. When once our hearts are es¬ 
tablished upon heavenly objects, and our affec¬ 
tions are not inordinately placed on the things of 
this world, the desire of that eternal happiness 
after w hich we aspire, will make us careful to 
secure it, by leading a life of the spirit,—w aik- 





25S 


ing in the commandments of God, according to 
the precepts of his holy gospel, and thereon ground 
that confidence which will at length terminate in 
the enjoyment of God in eternal hliss. 

ASPIRATIONS. 

O Jesus! victorious conqueror of sin and death! 
thou didst gloriously rise from the dead, and tri¬ 
umph over the malice of thine enemies, and there¬ 
by open the kingdom of heaven to all believers. 
Grant, dear Lord, that I also may rise from the 
death of sin to a life of grace; from the cold 
grave of lukewarmness and tepidity, to a life of 
zeal and fervour. O may I quit the old paths of 
my vicious habits, to walk in newness of life; that 
when thou shalt come at the last day, I also may 
appear with thee in glory. I desire now, O Sa¬ 
viour of the world! to celebrate the triumphs of 
thy glorious resurrection, and praise thy holy 
name for all the wonders of thy love. O may that 
love, dear Lord, operate upon my heart so effi¬ 
caciously, as to enable me to make a suitable re¬ 
turn of love. May I prove the sincerity of my 
love, by observing thy commands. May I never 
more offend thee, nor become a slave to sin, but 
to the last moment of my life continue faithful to 
thee, my Lord and my God. 

Thou art risen, O Jesus, my dear and adorable 
Redeemer! thy sorrows are at an end, thy tears 
are dried up, and thou hast gloriously triumphed 
over the cruelty and malice of thine enemies. 
May thy holy name be for ever praised, O victo¬ 
rious Redeemer of mankind; May all the powers 
of heaven and earth praise and magnify thy glo¬ 
rious and triumphant resurrection from the grave, 
whereby thou hast freed us from everlasting death. 
Thou hast redeemed me by thy precious blood; 
O may I never more submit to the slavery of sin. 
Thou hast broken my chains and set me at liberty; 
let me never; let me never again become a slave 
to the enemies of my soul. What shall I render 


259 


thee for so great a mercy ? O that I were compe¬ 
tent to make a suitable return for thy love! 
All thou requirest is, that I would love and serve 
thee; and can I refuse what thou so justly de- 
servest, and what thou hast purchased with thy 
precious blood? No my God I will love thee 
with my whole heart above all other things. I 
will love thee with all possible love, for I can ne¬ 
ver love thee as much as thou deservest. I will 
serve thee my God! with the utmost fidelity, and 
wdll rather suffer death, than be so ungrateful as 
to offend thee. O that I had a thousand hearts to 
give thee! and a thousand lives to employ in thy 
service! But what I have, my poor single heart, 
my whole life I now give and entirely consecrate 
to thy love and service. 

AD MAJOREM DEI GLORIAM. 


FINIS. 


\ Baltimore: Published at the Catholic Book Warehouse^ 67, 
! Uigh'Stveet, "within one door of Pratt-street, 




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